The Secretary for Strategic Affairs held a meeting on Friday business meeting with Jake Sullivanits North American counterpart, with the aim of promoting a new generation agenda of a productive nature between Argentina and the United States, which will allow the consolidation of a sustainable development with social inclusionit was officially reported.
During his two-day official visit to the United States, Beliz also managed credits before the World Bank and the European Investment Bank.
The Argentine official ended his agenda in Washington with a working meeting at the White House with the National Security Advisor, Jake Sullivan, President Joe Biden’s main advisor on National Security and the highest authority of the National Security Council of the United States.
During the 70-minute meeting, the Argentine ambassador to the United States, Jorge Argüello, and the Principal Director of the Council for the Western Hemisphere, Juan González, also participated.
According to a statement from the Secretariat for Strategic Affairsboth officials agreed on the need to work together to deal with the humanitarian crisis that Ukraine is going through, and condemned the use of force and the violation of the principle of sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Along these lines, they discussed how the current geopolitical context resulting from the war in Ukraine demands progress in concrete bilateral initiatives at a productive level, which allow addressing the growing international needs in terms of food security and energy security.
According to the official document, Jake Sullivan praised the Argentine leadership in the United Nations Human Rights Council and highlighted the humanitarian assistance provided by our country through the White Helmets.
White House?? @WhiteHouse
Today, positive work meeting with @JakeSullivan46, @Cartajuanero and Gustavo Belize.
We review the main topics of the vast and growing bilateral agenda???? pic.twitter.com/OtYIbI6IlQ– Jorge Arguello (@JorArguello) April 22, 2022
He also recognized the shared visions and common positions in multilateral organizations.
Beliz and Sullivan recalled the importance of continuing to work on the roadmap agreed upon at the meetings they held last year in Buenos Aires and Washington DC.
This roadmap is based on the impulse of a next generation strategic dialogue and a shared productive agenda that accelerates sustainable development with social inclusion based on the promotion of renewable energies, space and satellite innovation, internet and connectivity, food security, the knowledge economy, electromobility, and green productive development.
Both recognized the key role that US Foreign Direct Investment must play to realize its full potential in these cutting-edge technologies.
The Secretariat for Strategic Affairs is working with various multilateral banks in the preparation of projects linked to this bilateral agenda, such as the creation of the Artificial Intelligence Center (IDB); the Program to Strengthen Cybersecurity in the National State (BID); the Federal Digital Infrastructure Development Program (BIRF); the Program for Sustainable Management and Management of Agrifood Quality of Argentina (IDB); among others.
To promote this innovative bilateral roadmap, Beliz and Sullivan agreed on the importance of promoting public-private initiatives aimed at promoting an agenda of productive complementarity, together with the financing of priority projects for Argentina’s socially inclusive development in critical sectors, with a focus on innovation, energy and food chains.
The officials agreed on the leadership role that the World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank and the Monetary Fund must assume to channel a greater mobilization of resources destined to combat climate change at the hemispheric level.
These institutions should support sustainable development challenges of the continent by promoting a new generation agenda for development policies with social inclusion, trade and investment and the crystallization of the commitments of the Build Back Better World Initiative, according to the secretariat statement.
Beliz’s meeting with Sullivan took place within the framework of the trip to Washington to participate in the Annual Meeting of Governors of the World Bank and the IMF which began on April 18 and will run until next Sunday and where the national official holds the position of Governor of Argentina before the World Bank Group.
Meanwhile, yesterday Beliz met with John Kerry, President Biden’s special envoy for Climate, who thanked Argentina’s leadership in this area, highlighted the commitments assumed by Argentina in global climate matters, as well as the accompaniment of the latest initiatives launched at the multilateral level to advance mitigation and adaptation to climate change, the statement said.
The secretary invited Kerry to visit Argentina in the coming months to develop a national agenda within the framework of the Economic and social Councilrelated to innovative mechanisms for climate finance, food and energy security.
Within the framework of this visit, Beliz also met with Michael Kaplan of the United States Department of the Treasurywith whom he addressed the problems of middle-income countries with vulnerabilities, and explored new alternatives for strengthening multilateral development banking, debt relief and better use of special drawing rights.
During this two-day trip to Washington, he also met Mark Wells, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs at the Department of Statewith whom he discussed spaces for common cooperation in technology, space and satellite innovation, clean energy development and climate adaptation.
In another central point of his agenda in the United States, Beliz met with Axel van Trotsenburg, Managing Director of World Bank Operationsto monitor the priority projects agreed for the next biennium, which stand out for their federal perspective, focused on the climate change adaptation and implementation agenda, digital innovation, connectivity and technology, artificial intelligence, human development and the promotion of economy 4.0.
This programming agreed with the World Bank last year allow the country to access USD 2,000 million in extra financial resources, only for this current year.
Among the lines of work planned for this year, the modernization of the Belgrano Sur railway line; the execution of drainage and flood control works in the northern region; support for the protection of national parks; support for active employment policies to promote job placement and the promotion of technology-based companies, among others.
With the aim of continuing to deepen financing lines that promote sustainable development in Argentina, Beliz held a working meeting with Werner Hoyer, President of the European Investment Bankwith whom he analyzed in detail the progress of the projects launched this year -Strategic Plan for Covid-19 Vaccination in the Argentine Republic and Comprehensive Management of the Salado River Basin- for a total amount of US$220 million, which will benefit directly to more than 9 million Argentines.
For 2022, it is expected to work on a new program that highlights financing operations for nearly US$200 million that support the Federal Plan for Regional Electric Transportation and the Comprehensive Urban Solid Waste Management Programindicates the official information.
To close this two-day tour, on Friday, the presentation was made in the framework of the World Bank’s Board of Governors, of the eco-token projectan innovative sustainable financing mechanism that promotes payment for ecosystem services and the concept of environmental debt.
During his visit, Beliz worked with the full support of the Argentine ambassador in Washington, Jorge Argüello, and his team at the Argentine embassy, as well as Cecilia Nahón, Argentine representative to the World Bank.
