In the city of Brasilia, Foreign Minister Diana Mondino was welcomed today by Brazil’s Vice-President and Minister of Development, Industry, Trade and Services, Geraldo Alckmin. As part of the visit, she also met at the Itamaraty Palace with her counterpart, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Federative Republic of Brazil, Mauro Luiz Iecker Vieira, where they discussed central aspects of the broad bilateral relationship, which constitutes a true State policy for the two countries.
Mondino arrived in Brazil yesterday night for a three-day visit, during which she will follow a vast agenda of political and commercial meetings in Brasilia and Sao Paulo.
Earlier today, Mondino met with Geraldo Alckmin, to whom she ratified that Argentina regards Brazil as a strategic partner and a sister nation, and that the union between their two peoples, through deep historical, cultural and social bonds, transcends the administrations governing the two countries at any given time.
During the meeting, the Argentine Foreign Minister and the Brazilian Vice-President agreed that the potential of the bilateral relationship in trade and economic terms should continue to be explored and projected, and that, on that basis, a renewed and modern boost should be given to MERCOSUR, with the aim of increasing internal trade and broadening the bloc’s external recognition.
They also highlighted the vast possibilities for cooperation in areas such as physical and energy infrastructure, defence, science and technology, education, and culture, at both regional and multilateral fora.
Mondino was joined by the Secretary for International Economic Relations of the Argentine Foreign Ministry, Marcelo Cima, and the Undersecretary for Affairs of the Americas, Mariano Vergara.
Later, the Argentine Foreign Minister arrived at the Itamaraty Palace, Brazil’s diplomatic seat, and held a private meeting with her Brazilian counterpart first and, then, an extended meeting between the technical delegations of both countries.
In that context, Mondino and Vieira welcomed the recent meeting of the Argentina-Brazil Political Coordination Mechanism, held in March, and agreed that the regular meetings between high-ranking authorities bear witness to the bonds of friendship and the strategic bilateral relationship, laying the path for a strengthened shared agenda in strategic areas.
The Argentine Foreign Minister also highlighted the strategic nature of the trade relationship, as Argentina’s sales of goods and services to Brazil are characterized by high added value—as compared to our sales to the rest of the world—and expressed Argentina’s interest in signing, as soon as possible, the Memorandum of Understanding for the creation of a “Binational Committee on Trade, Investments and Economic Relations” as proposed by Argentina last March. In addition, the Argentine Foreign Minister conveyed to her Brazilian counterpart the concerns voiced by Argentine exporters in connection with some difficulties experienced with the Import Alert Regime (RAI) applied by Brazil.
Furthermore, the Ministers agreed to continue with the negotiations for coordinated regulation of border crossings in order to optimize their operation. Mondino also expressed Argentina’s interest in establishing a specific bilateral mechanism for permanent bilateral dialogue and cooperation on river-related matters to enable a better use of shared water resources, and informed Vieira that Argentina will eventually submit draft instruments in this regard.
The Argentine Foreign Minister and her Brazilian counterpart discussed the significant complementarities between both countries’ gas resources and the needs of the Brazilian productive sectors. In that regard, they highlighted the importance of ongoing discussions between Brazil's Ministry of Mines and Energy and Argentina's Ministry of Economy, within a context of depletion of regional gas reserves.
In addition, they underscored the recent execution of the Memorandum of Understanding between the relevant national civil aviation agencies, and the agreement to establish a Binational Committee on Antarctic Cooperation that will enable more systematic coordination of both countries’ positions in Antarctic fora, as well as the enhancement of logistic and scientific cooperation in Antarctica.
They also highlighted the progress made between the General Ports Administration (AGP) and the private users of the Waterway with respect to the compensation fee charged in the Parana river, which will soon enable making progress on the discussions regarding this issue within the context of the Intergovernmental Committee of the Waterway.
In the field of peaceful uses of nuclear energy and technology, Mondino and Vieira highlighted the strategic bilateral relations between both countries, with the central role of the Brazilian-Argentine Agency for Nuclear Material Accounting and Control (ABACC) which guarantees trust in safeguards and is a unique, internationally-renowned bilateral institution.
In terms of space cooperation, they expressed their satisfaction over the 13th Meeting of the Argentine-Brazilian Joint Working Group on Space Cooperation held last October, for the first time in 12 years. The Foreign Ministers reaffirmed their interest in advancing towards the implementation of the SABIA-Mar satellite project which provides for the launching of two Earth observation satellites into orbit, one Argentine and one Brazilian.
On the regional front, the Argentine Foreign Minister highlighted the need to modernize the integration process and obtain results that will show that MERCOSUR addresses the needs of the civil society, the private sector and the market. The Ministers also worked on MERCOSUR’s foreign relations agenda.
Finally, Mondino referred to the Brasilia Consensus, a mechanism in which our country participates actively by leading efforts in areas such as health, transport and infrastructure. In addition, the Argentine Foreign Minister reiterated Argentina's desire to promote regional integration forums, like the Organization of American States (OAS), where Argentina served as President of the Permanent Council until March 31.
