The last USA president to set foot in Argentina was George W. Bush, who attended a regional summit there in 2005 but it was not a formal state visit.
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U.S. President Barack Obama said on Wednesday he did not expect a breakthrough on Middle East peace before he leaves office and reiterated his support for a two-state solution in which Israelis and Palestinians could live peacefully side by side.
“This is a new beginning”, he said. The Obama family is there as part of an official visit. He also said that Argentina developed with the same values as the U.S. In an era when Cold War thinking often put Washington behind right-wing governments in the region, the United States initially backed the 1976-1983 dictatorship, during which as many as 30,000 people were killed.
Obama reiterated a pledge Wednesday to declassify USA military and intelligence documents about Washingtons role in the military dictatorship.
Less than 24 hours in Buenos Aires, and Barack Obama is already doing the tango. Many were forcibly disappeared and hundreds of children were stolen from their detained mothers. Macri declined to say what he expects the records will reveal. “Now, over time that could evolve”.
“There are moments of great success and glory and there are moments that were counterproductive or contrary to what I believe America should stand for”, he said.
Obama added a few reflections of his own.
Toasting his host, Obama quoted Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges: “And now, I think that in this country, we have a certain right to hope”.
“He said “OK”, and then he started to dance”.
It was the opposite sentiment at a factory-turned-concert hall where Obama fielded questions from young Argentinians at a town hall meeting.
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Information for this article was contributed by Josh Lederman and Peter Prengaman of The Associated Press and by Angela Greiling Keane and Margaret Talev of Bloomberg News.
