Obama said that the two countries would identify the obstacles impeding the progress of commerce. He added, “That was also a path of inspiration for what our dear country is now going through”.
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Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama dance with tango dancers during a state dinner in Argentina.
Eventually, Obama relented, joining the dancer for a few turns on the dance floor.
First Lady Michelle Obama was not left out.
Obama has promised to declassify US military and intelligence records related to the dictatorship-era, a time when Cold War thinking often put Washington behind right-wing governments in Latin America.
“This is a new beginning”, Obama said. Fernandez was close with Hugo Chavez, Venezuelas famously anti-American late president, and openly admired Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro.
The place in question, the Kirchner Cultural Centre in Buenos Aires, Argentina, is one of the largest cultural centers in the world. “It’s sort of like herding cats”, Obama complained.
Although the entire Obama family observed a moment of silence in light of the Brussels attacks, the commander in chief still faced backlash when he decided against returning to America. The U.S. was heartened by the opposition’s success in Venezuela’s recent legislative elections.
Addressing a small audience afterward, Obama said it takes courage for a society to address uncomfortable truths about its past, and while doing so can be divisive and frustrating, it is essential to moving forward.
Visiting a memorial to victims of Argentina’s “dirty war”, President Obama said Thursday that the USA was “slow to speak out for human rights” during the military junta’s rule 40 years ago.
In this March 3, 2016 photo, Mothers of Plaza de Mayo human rights group arrive at Plaza de Mayo do their traditional Thursday march in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Thursday, March 3, 2016. Of his pledge to release documents, Obama said: “I hope this gesture also helps to rebuild trust that may have been lost between our two countries”. “One of the great things about America, and I said this in Cuba, was that we engage in a lot of self-criticism”.
Still, there were detractors.
Obama described the 1976-1983 dictatorship, during which the Argentine security forces killed up to 30,000 people, as a “dark period” in Argentina’s history.
After the meeting and a news conference with Macri, Obama plans to hold a town hall with Argentine youth.
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“I think there’s no doubt that people would like to see a little bit more stagecraft and a balance toward decisive action rather than business as usual from the president”, Bloomberg Politics managing editor Mark Halperin said.
