| Photo: EFE/ Juan Ignacio Roncoroni
The President of Argentina, Alberto Fernández, discarded this Wednesday () the possibility of the country also applying sanctions against Russia, because, according to him, economic relations between the two countries are scarce.
However, Fernández added, after a meeting in Berlin with the cGerman Chancellor Olaf Scholz12083319, that the war between Russia and Ukraine affects the entire planet and that sanctions have repercussions negative in other countries and also in Argentina.
“The relations between the two countries are minimal and therefore the issue of sanctions does not arise. However, sanctions against Russia have negative repercussions for the whole world and also for Argentina”, he said, after the meeting with the head of the German government.
The meeting between Scholz and Ferná ndez also discussed relations between the European Union and Mercosur and Argentina’s agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on a new program for paying off the organization’s debt.
“We talk about relations between our countries and also about the world situation, especially about Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine”, Scholz said in a joint statement. “President Fernández and I agreed that we have to work to end this war,” he added. The German Chancellor also praised Argentina’s position at the UN on the war and said that it is clear that the country is on the side of the victims.
Fernández, in turn, emphasized that the war in Ukraine “is not just a conflict between Russia and NATO or between Russia and Ukraine, but something that affects the whole world”.
On bilateral relations, both Scholz and Fernández highlighted the possibilities for cooperation in the field of energy. “We agree that we have great possibilities for cooperation in the field of energy. Argentina has a huge potential in renewable energies”, stated Scholz.
Fernández also highlighted the possibilities for Argentina to stand out as a supplier of liquefied natural gas and also in the development of green hydrogen.
As for relations between the EU and Mercosur, the two politicians agreed on the need to relaunch negotiations between the two blocs on a broad trade agreement. While Scholz emphasized the importance of setting standards on issues such as the environment, Fernández pointed to the tendency towards protectionism “of some actors in the EU” as the main obstacle for the pact to enter into force.
