Today, Foreign Minister Susana Malcorra referred to her participation in the Extraordinary Session of the Permanent Council of the Organization of American States (OAS), held in Washington to discuss the situation in Venezuela: “It was important that the Venezuelan Executive attended the OAS meeting and presented its views at an official forum as is the Council, which provides an opportunity for all parties to listen to each other and express their positions. Argentina’s approach, which was shared by other States, was to propose to the Venezuelan Government that we sit down and see whether there is a way to find a structure that may allow us to work with OAS, UNASUR, CELAC or any other mechanism in order to help to unblock many of the issues that the Foreign Minister herself described as a complex situation.”
“We do not have interventionist aims, but only the intention to help to improve the space for dialogue. We cannot replace the will of the Venezuelan people to find their own solutions. We are hoping to assist through our own memories of what happened to us in 2001, a very recent experience that is engraved in the DNA of our society” remarked the Foreign Minister in an interview with Radio Continental.
When asked about the situation of the pulp mills in Uruguay, Malcorra stated that: “President Macri met in January with Tabaré Vázquez and they agreed on an action plan that includes the creation of a joint commission for cleaning up the River Uruguay in full. Even though it is true that this tension began as a result of the pulp mill, the fact is that we have mistreated the River Uruguay far beyond the pulp mills. There is a lab that we are going to use to carry out this review and that we will make available to Mercosur in general”.
With regard to the annual march in Gualeguaychu to be held tomorrow, she stated that: "There are certain dates on which tensions run a little higher and that is the case with what is going to happen tomorrow at the bridge. In respect of management and commitments, both the Uruguayan government and the Argentine government are undertaking work. The pulp mill is a wake-up call for Argentine nationals, residents of Entre Rios and Uruguayan citizens to remember that we must be much more responsible with the use of our water resources”.
In relation to the recent statements made by Donald Trump on Argentina, Malcorra asserted: “The election process in the United States has inherent complexities and I would say that even Americans are very surprised. I believe that Mr. Trump speaks from a position that is not healthy one; many of the things he has said about Mexico are precisely along this line. We hope Americans will choose wisely”.
Press Release No. 128/16
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