MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Argentine FM holds meetings in DC as planned

Cafiero told Blinken and Pelosi how much Argentina needed a word from the US before the IMF to reach a better deal

Argentine Foreign Minister Santiago Cafiero was told Tuesday in Washington DC by his colleague, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, that the United States “strongly supported negotiations with the IMF.”

According to the Argentine Foreign Ministry, Cafiero told Blinken that “a message from the political authority to the Treasury [was] necessary to have the support of the United States at the International Monetary Fund, so that Argentina's growth of Argentina is not restricted.”

Argentine Government sources also said Blinken assured the Argentine delegation that the United States looked forward “to a prompt positive resolution.”

Before the meeting at the Thomas Jefferson room of the Harry Truman building, headquarters of the State Department in Washington DC, Blinken had told Cafiero that “Argentina is a friend and a partner in our hemisphere and beyond. We have a lot to talk about today, from events and challenges in our own hemisphere to points that go far beyond.”

Blinken and Cafiero also discussed Argentina's recent appointment as president pro tempore of CELAC, the regional forum which excludes the United States and confronts the OAS, which has not been welcome by the administration of US President Joseph Biden.

“We are also looking forward to Argentina assuming a leadership role in the Human Rights Council, where we look forward to working closely together, and we strongly support a vibrant Argentine economy, which will further strengthen our own partnership and Argentina's leadership in our hemisphere and beyond,” Blinken was quoted as saying.

Cafiero replied that “we look forward to working on a constructive agenda that involves human rights, climate change, disarmament and non-proliferation, as well as economic sustainability.”

After his appointment at the State Department, Cafiero met with House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who like President Joseph Biden, stems from the Democratic Party. She has represented the district of San Francisco, California, at the US Congress for 33 years.

Cafiero highlighted the work carried out by the Argentine Caucus within the United States House of Representatives, a bilateral friendship parliamentary group similar in nature to the one that exists within the Argentine Lower House.

The Foreign Minister also underscored the importance of deepening parliamentary diplomacy between the two countries. Cafiero and Pelosi agreed on the importance of encouraging interparliamentary dialogue as a relevant element for strengthening bilateral ties.

During the meeting, the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic were also discussed.

Both countries also agreed on the need to fight anti-Semitism and Cafiero stated that the attack on the Embassy of Israel in 1992 as well as the attack on the AMIA in 1994 were deplorable and reprehensible acts, for which the Argentine Government is seeking to do justice by having the culprits arrested and tried, which is what President Alberto Fernández told the 76th United Nations General Assembly on September 21, 2021.

Cafiero also told Pelosi that the United States is one of Argentina's most important trading partners, but that Argentina was on the losing end of those exchanges and that actions were needed to even things up. The Foreign Minister thus called for the prompt restitution of the Generalized System of Preferences (SGP) program, which is being processed in the US Congress for its renewal. Specifically, Cafiero referred to the market access problem faced by Argentine exports from regional economies in the citrus sector, tubes for the oil industry and biodiesel.

Just like had had told Blinken, Cafiero insisted on the need that negotiations with the IMF do not halt Argentina's recovery path.