Argentina is looking to ease tensions with China following President Javier Milei's remarks aimed at Beijing.
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| Argentine President Javier Milei called China a 'killer' during his election campaign and hinted that Argentina would not join the BRICS group of leading emerging economies (Source: AP) |
Argentina has appointed veteran diplomat Marcelo Suárez Salvia as the new Argentine Ambassador to China.
The decision to appoint Mr. Salvia - currently Argentina's ambassador to Trinidad and Tobago - came after several rounds of formal and informal negotiations between Buenos Aires and Beijing, the Argentine newspaper Clarín reported.
According to the El Zonda news portal, China has received the proposal to appoint Mr. Salvia and informed the Argentine side of its acceptance of this proposal.
The move comes as Buenos Aires seeks to ease tensions following criticism from President Javier Milei aimed at Beijing - the South American nation's second-largest trading partner.
Argentina-China relations have been strained since President Milei was sworn in two weeks ago.
Mr Milei, a right-wing libertarian, has pledged to pursue close ties with the United States and downgrade relations with China, Argentina's second-largest trading partner and the biggest importer of soybeans and beef.
The politician also called China a “killer” during the election campaign and hinted that Argentina would not join the BRICS group of leading emerging economies - Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.
The New York-based online information platform REDD Intelligence on December 21 cited sources from Argentina's previous government as revealing that Beijing had frozen a major $6.5 billion currency swap deal with Argentina, an economy that is severely short of cash.
The agreement was signed by China and Argentina in October 2023 in Beijing, under former President Alberto Fernandez, who called China a “true friend” of Argentina during that visit.
When asked about the information about the appointment of an ambassador to Argentina, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin on December 21 did not deny it, but only stated that Beijing maintains its commitment to "cooperating with Argentina on the basis of equality and mutual benefit."
(according to SCMP)
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