The Minister for Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, José Manuel Albares, and his Argentinian counterpart, Santiago Cafiero, signed a joint declaration today in which they advocate to step up relations between the European Union and Latin America during the Spanish Presidency of the EU in the second half of 2023.
The meeting between the two foreign affairs ministers takes place on the eve of the 3rd EU-CELAC Ministerial Meeting in Buenos Aires. They both trust that this event will mark a turning point in the empowerment of bi-regional political dialogue and raise the profile of the strategic relationship between Europe and Latin America and the Caribbean.
José Manuel Albares and Santiago Cafiero took the opportunity of the mutual understanding between the two countries to boost the potential of this relationship, both in the field of investments and connectivity and of trade.
Against the current global geopolitical backdrop, they also sought to underline the importance of the Association Agreement between the EU and Mercosur, and of the cooperation mechanisms that can draw the societies of both blocs of countries closer together.
The two ministers also reviewed existing perspectives within the framework of the Internationalisation Plan of the Spanish economy. Spain is the second leading investor in Argentina and the presence of Argentinian investments in Spain is on the rise; hence, both parties considered the perspective of maintaining and increasing investor flows in both directions, consolidating the conditions to make this possible.
As regards current affairs, José Manuel Albares and Santiago Cafiero analysed the global energy crisis and the possibilities for Argentina to become a sustainable energy provider to the EU, along with the possibilities that exist for energy to arrive through Spanish ports. The meeting included the evaluation of compliance with the bilateral Strategic Action Plan for the two-year period 2021-2023 and they expressed their satisfaction at the achievements obtained in its execution.