Today, Foreign Minister Susana Malcorra participated in the Argentina Summit 2017, held in Buenos Aires and organized by The Economist, and stated: “We must establish transition patterns to reach new equilibriums. This involves being acutely aware of our position, our weaknesses and our strengths.”
Speaking to the press, Malcorra explained the scope of the Mercosur foreign ministers’ meeting which will be held tomorrow at the Palacio San Martín: “It is a work meeting with the ministers of the four founding signatory countries, which aims to discuss the issue of Mercosur and the European Union. We are starting an in-depth discussion. We, the foreign ministers, need to have a political approach, so that is the key issue. We will surely deal with other issues in the region as well.”
The Foreign Minister expressed her support for a free trade agreement between Mercosur and the European Union; however, she warned: “the European Union cannot expect us to take into account all their issues of interest without including the agro-industry.”
In her address, Malcorra stated: “In a world of countless uncertainties, our national Government is certain of one thing: closing up to the world has not been fruitful for us. After being extremely selective in our integration into the world, we see it becoming protectionist, nationalist and populist; we have vast first-hand experience with this approach, and we have confirmed that it does not work. Global integration does not mean opening up indiscriminately, but deciding where our interests are and defending them.”
“It is necessary to pay attention to opportunities and react swiftly, with Mercosur as a launching platform, now that the EU no longer expects to enter into an agreement with the United States. What is happening with Nafta provides us with an opportunity to bring Mexico into the region, given that it used to view the United States as its only partner,” Malcorra added.
As regards the relationship with the European Union, she assured: “I trust the bloc to wake up and understand that there is a historic opportunity due to the leadership gap in multilateralism. It is not an economic but a political discussion, and there is a firm belief that we must favour the political aspect and exert pressure on reluctant economic sectors to move forward towards an agreement.”
When asked about the characteristics of the People’s Republic of China and its investments in Argentina, Malcorra highlighted: “China is a significant global player. To deny the existence of China as a partner in projects is to deny the existence of a part of the world. Given that we start from the premise that we must open up intelligently to the world, China is an important factor to acknowledge.”
In this regard, Malcorra stated: “What we have done since we took office is meet with our Chinese partner and raise several issues once again; we have revised much of what was signed. In fact, the project in the South, the hydraulic power station, is being fully revised, taking into account many of the objections against it (some of the most important of which are environmental). We have inspected the station that China has built in Argentina, we have adjusted that agreement with the Chinese party and we have clearly established in writing that the station will only be used for civilian purposes.”
Lastly, Malcorra underscored: “In China, we have found a partner who, when we established our priorities by stating that we are willing to move forward so long as our priorities are aligned with the issues brought to the table, was flexible and willing to make progress in that regard.”
Press release No. 059/17
Press Office: 4819-7375 / 8296 / 7388
@CancilleriaARG