2023-10-19 12:31:23
Alberto Fernandez greets Putin at the III Belt and Road Forum in China
The gesture lasted just seconds but was clearly observed. While the group photo of the III Belt and Road Forum held in Beijing was ending, Alberto Fernández approached Vladimir Putin with a smile, with the intention of shaking his hand to the statesman who is repudiated by the international community – It has even been the official Argentine position – after the invasion of Ukraine.
The images were captured by the Russia Today (RT) site. There you can see the moment when Putin turns to address his peers and sees Fernández, who takes advantage of that situation to greet the Russian president. In the same sequence, other heads of state, including Chinese President Xi Jinping, approached Putin and the ruler of the People’s Republic of China.
It was not the only moment in which the harmony with Moscow was evident. During his opening speech at the forum, Fernández thanked China for the financial support provided to his nation and celebrated Argentina’s inclusion in the BRICS group. What was striking was an explicit mention, in a tone of praise, that he made to Putin.
“I also welcome the proposal that President Putin has made to work in the BRICS and improve communication between the countries,” he said.
The greeting between Fernández and his Russian counterpart took place this Wednesday in Beijing, in the early hours of the day in Argentina. The two presidents traveled with other invited heads of state to the Chinese capital to participate in the Third Belt and Road Forum, which commemorated its tenth anniversary. It all happened while the president of the United States, Joe Biden, had just visited Israel to support that country in its battle against the terrorist group Hamas.
Since the war broke out in Ukraine, the bilateral link between Argentina and Russia has been reduced to its minimum expression. Shortly before the conflict began, Fernández’s foreign policy had shown fluid cooperation for the purchase of Sputnik V vaccines against COVID-19 and, the head of state even offered Putin that Argentina “be the gateway.” ” from Russia to Latin America. Everything went on file since the Government condemned the attack carried out by Moscow and supported the defense of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Oleksandrovich Zelensky.
Currently, the theater of operations in Eastern Europe has taken a backseat due to the terrorist actions of the fundamentalist group Hamas and Israel’s military response in the Gaza Strip.
Alberto Fernandez praised a proposal from Putin during his speech
Putin traveled to the Asian capital as the guest of honor of his counterpart Xi Jinping. Both countries are aligned to counterbalance the influence of the United States and Western European powers in the transition towards a new multipolar order, with the Brics bloc as a launching pad.
The Government supports the policy carried out by the organization of emerging countries, led by Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, and to which it intends to add Argentina as of January 1 along with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia, Iran and Egypt. Alberto Fernández highlighted in Beijing “the support we have received to join the BRICS is a reflection of the multilateralism we share and our desire for a more equitable and just world.”
From the official perspective, the approach to this pole of geopolitical power serves the interests of financing and promoting infrastructure works with the endorsement of China, one of the country’s main strategic commercial partners. In addition, Dilma Rousseff, another ally of the Unión por la Patria political space, recently joined the New Brics Development Bank (NDB). The financial entity led by the former Brazilian president is another alternative to obtain foreign currency and project investments. During their stay, Alberto and Dilma held a bilateral meeting and formalized the country’s request for entry into said bank.
In his speech, Alberto Fernández also celebrated the expansion of the second tranche of the swap agreement with China, which went from 5,000 to 6,500 million dollars, equivalent to 47,000 million yuan. “This news is the fruit of four years of efforts to strengthen ties with China. In times of difficulty, Xi Jinping’s Government has shown great generosity and attention to our needs. Our gratitude extends to all the Chinese people,” he noted.
The country has signed several commitments with the People’s Republic of China, which will enter a zone of uncertainty if there is a change of government towards an opposition political sign as of December 10. Along with support for the “swap”, Xi Jinping provides financial support for strategic infrastructure works, which consists of two tranches: one already approved for 14 billion dollars – agreed upon at the V Meeting of the Strategic Dialogue for Economic Cooperation and Coordination ( DECCE)- and a second package for 9.7 billion dollars.
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