Argentina and Uruguay: Foreign Ministers agree on presidential summit next month

Argentina and Uruguay: Foreign Ministers agree on presidential summit next month

Foreign Ministers Francisco Bustillo of Uruguay and Santiago Cafiero of Argentina Friday agreed to broker a bilateral presidential summit between Alberto Fernández and Luis Lacalle Pou in April, during which a joint declaration is expected to be reached regarding recent agreements between the top diplomats.

 Bustillo and Cafiero met Friday in Montevideo in the framework of the 50th anniversary of the Treaty of the River Plate. Friday’s encounter was a follow-up to the previous gathering in Buenos Aires on Feb. 16.

They also agreed to convene next week a meeting of Central Bank authorities to study the feasibility of a system to expedite bilateral trade using local currency.

A Palacio San Martín statement reads that the foreign ministers “agreed that a meeting will be held between Presidents Alberto Fernández and Luis Lacalle Pou during the next month of April, with the objective of translating into a joint declaration the multiple agreements reached today, in the year of the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Treaty of the River Plate and its maritime front.”

Both foreign ministers also agreed on further strengthening cooperation ties in defense, in the production and maintenance of equipment such as aircraft and radars, “favoring technology transfer and joint development,” the document also mentioned.

Cafiero and Bustillo also agreed on the importance of “intensifying the balanced dialogue” between Mercosur and the European Union. They also highlighted the Ibero-American Summit to be held on March 24 and 25 in the Dominican Republic, with a focus on environment and climate change, digital rights, food security, and international financing.