BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) – On a fence-mending mission, President Barack Obama held up Argentina on Wednesday as an emerging world leader worthy of USA support, as he and Argentine President Mauricio Macri broke with years of tensions between their countries.
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The coup on March 24, 1976, was initially backed by the U.S. which killed up to 30,000 people in a crackdown against Marxist rebels, labour unions and leftist opponents. “Cruz escaped for America, the land of the free”, Obama said.
State dinners can be staid.
President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama danced the tango in Argentina at a State Dinner, and now you too can feel like the proudest parent watching your bar or bat mitzvah kid slow-dance with their middle school crush!
But the past has never been far away. That way is what he’s calling “declassification diplomacy”.
Macri says Argentina recognizes Obama’s visit as a gesture of friendship. But as controversy about the timing of his visit grew last week, Obama’s administration announced plans to declassify secret intelligence and military documents from the period, potentially shedding more light on a story left partially untold until now.
“Right now there’s a lot of underbrush, a lot of unnecessary trade irritants and commercial irritants that can be cleared away administratively and that’s some of the work that we intend to do right away”, Obama said.
Eric Trump his son also told la Nacion that they are looking for the flawless location to build a Trump tower in Argentina.
One group of victims’ relatives labelled the timing of Obama’s visit a provocation against those struggling against impunity.
Argentine President Mauricio Macri hosted the Obamas for.
Obama’s visit to the South America is considered the latest in USA attempts at reconciliation with Latin America, after the president’s visits to Brazil and Chile. “What has been working is special operators partnering with Iraqi security forces and going after leadership networks and couriers, and disrupting the connection between their bases in Raqqa and their bases in Mosul”, the US President added.
The White House is keen to help bolster the new president, spotting a chance to put Argentina on a firmer financial footing and create a new ally in the region.
Yet Macri still has to grapple with double-digit inflation, a yawning fiscal deficit and a shortage of hard currency.
A $100 billion default in 2001 made Argentina a financial pariah, effectively shutting it out from worldwide capital markets. But US officials quickly denied the claim.
Until the issue is resolved, Argentina is frozen out of the International Monetary Fund, making investment hard.
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“They do not feel ghettoized”, Obama said.
