MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Fernández thanks Ibero-American Summit support on Malvinas

Mercosur has lived through the different political signs ruling each member country, Fernández explained

Argentine President Alberto Fernández Saturday thanked att attendees at the XXVIII Ibero-American Summit for their unanimous support in a joint declaration urging the United Kingdom to resume talks regarding the Falklands/Malvinas Islands issue.

“I wish to thank the Heads of State and Government of the Ibero-American countries and the Representatives of the Member States for the Special Communiqué on the Question of the Malvinas Islands. We are deeply grateful for the permanent support to the call for the resumption of bilateral negotiations with the United Kingdom in accordance with the resolutions of the United Nations and other international fora,” Fernández said during his 7-minute speech.

The document to which he was referring was unanimously endorsed by 19 countries in the Americas plus Spain and Portugal.

“Today, seated around this table, let us make the decision to unite our peoples in pursuit of their legitimate rights. When in Argentina we celebrate forty years of uninterrupted democracy, let us not open the doors to the detractors of the Rule of Law who distill hatred from their mouths seeking to discourage our peoples. In this time that has come to us, undoubtedly the most difficult one, let us make it possible. Let us unite to be the architects of our future, and so that never again will the central world postpone us to the peripheries of decadence,” Fernández also said.

He also explained that “humanity is still recovering from the effects of a pandemic, in which the central world is entangled in an inexplicable war such as the Russian invasion against Ukraine that alters the global economy, in which the foundations of the international financial system are creaking and in which climate is undergoing changes that flood or dry up vital territories for humanity.”

“Financial capitalism makes the economy tremble when another of its speculation-laden bubbles bursts unexpectedly. The central world, which passively allows these bubbles to inflate, rushes to the rescue of the 'system' before the explosion so that the domino effect that we already experienced fifteen years ago does not appear again. At this stage of events, with so much concentration, with so much speculative gambling, we should already understand that the current financial system should no longer be helped. We must change it drastically,” the Argentine president stressed.

“Our America, in the years in which Donald Trump ruled in the United States, suffered a tremendous process of regional disintegration. UNASUR was fading away as its members disassociated themselves by complying with mandates imposed by that Republican administration. Even the OAS [Organization of American States] was at the service of that disintegrating objective by validating a coup d'état in Bolivia,” he went on.

In Fernández's view, “globalization also expresses a time of revision in its commercial aspect. The clear irruption of China in the world market has generated two forceful effects. The first is a relocation of industries to their places of origin. The search for cheap labor only resulted in demands and social crises. The second is the strengthening of regional blocs. Nations, united in blocs, have been able to leverage their resources and generate a better framework for social development.”

“If we want a fair and sustainable Ibero-America, the first step we must take is to re-establish unity. A unity that does not allow the prolongation of economic blockades that affect the peoples of the region. A unity necessary to preserve common interests in which we must respect ideological diversity in strong democracies where human rights are respected,” Fernández explained.

“In such a difficult time as the one we are going through, marked by social discontent in which hate speeches that punish democracies find an echo, we are morally obliged to join efforts. We are all passengers in the same boat. We have a common destiny that summons us: 'No one is saved alone', [Pope] Francis would tell us.”

“The rates and surcharges imposed by the [International Monetary Fund] IMF on indebted countries are abusive,” the Argentine leader went on. “We are witnessing an international scenario characterized by high and unsustainable levels of indebtedness that condition the growth of our countries. The rates and surcharges imposed by the International Monetary Fund on indebted countries are abusive. This reality collides with the international financial architecture that I questioned before,” said Fernández while calling for “increasing the transparency of international financial institutions and advocating for greater access to credit facilities, in order to boost growth and development before speculation.”

“Today Argentina is hit by a historic drought that compromises producers, impacts the value of food, and restricts essential financial resources for the economic and income recovery of our people,” Fernández underlined.

“We are integrationists by identity”, insisted Fernandez and recalled: “In 1991 we founded Mercosur which is still in force despite the problems it faces. It has endured due to the coexistence between governments of different political signs. Today we hold its pro tempore presidency,” President Fernández added.

“In terms of food security and energy transition, the improvement of productivity levels, as well as the integration of logistics and value chains, must incorporate the discussion on investment and technology transfer as levers to strengthen the global food and energy system,” Fernández argued.

“Projects such as the development of lithium, green hydrogen, family agriculture, and advances in science, technology, and innovation require a major cooperative effort. The desired destination is not a return to the past. We have raw materials that we must be able to industrialize so that our exports are boosted,” the South American leader also pointed out.

“Argentina is deeply committed to the implementation of the Paris Agreement. We are making progress in the transition to renewable energies, the adoption of clean energies for the reduction of emissions, as well as the eradication of illegal deforestation and the restoration of ecosystems,” Fernández also told the Summit, which is held through 60% financing from Spain, followed by contributions from Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, and Portugal.

Earlier in the day, Fernández had breakfast with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and with the European Union's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell to discuss ties between Latin America and Europe ahead of the July 17-18 EU-CELAC Summit in Brussels.

As President Pro Tempore of Mercosur, Fernandez raised the issue of new difficulties for exports to the European Union due to environmental barriers becoming trade barriers.