According to the Argentine Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Argentine Foreign Minister Mundino will pay an official visit to China from April 28 to 30. It has been learned that China is the first stop of Mondino's current foreign trip, and she will hold working talks with a number of senior Chinese officials to discuss some basic issues representing the interests of both sides. During his visit to China, Mondino visited Shanghai and Beijing to participate in forums to identify investment opportunities in Argentina. After his trip to China, Mondino will also visit France, Belgium and Portugal.
It is understood that since Argentine President Milley took office in December last year, there has been a change in the foreign policy signals released by the Argentine government. Over the past 20 years, the bilateral relations between China and Argentina have continued to strengthen, trade exchanges and diplomatic cooperation between the two countries have continued to develop, and China has increased its investment and financial assistance to Argentina. But when Milley became president, he vowed to weaken ties with China and build a more stable and closer relationship with the United States.
Former Argentine President Emmanuel Macri also proposed in his election campaign to prioritize relations with the United States and Europe, and questioned Argentina's ties with China. However, due to the deep economic interdependence between Argentina and China and the existing cooperation agreements, Argentina has not been able to distance the relationship between the two countries. For a long time, the cooperation between China and Argentina in the fields of agriculture, economy and trade, and mining has broad prospects and a solid foundation.
The trade between China and Argentina is mutually beneficial, and the export of Argentine agricultural products promotes trade balance, and at the same time is of great significance to China's food supply. In the case of soybeans and meat, for example, China is the main exporter of these food products to Argentina, and if Argentina loses China, the largest trading market, it will be difficult for Argentina to find buyers who can replace China. Therefore, maintaining friendly economic and trade relations with China is an inevitable choice for Argentina.
In addition, the growing influence of Chinese investment in Argentina is that mining projects will not be altered by the government's foreign policy shift, especially when lithium resources are strategically important. In addition, China is an important partner for Argentina in the renewable energy and transport sectors. Given the shared interests between China and Argentina, Mondino and Wang Yi met on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference in February this year to reaffirm their commitment to maintaining a strong relationship.
Mondino's visit to China to seek investment opportunities is a testament to her strong vision for deepening practical cooperation and strengthening engagement between China and Argentina, and that China and Argentina are willing to take their bilateral relations to a new level. However, while the Milley government is aware of China's importance, it has not fundamentally changed its approach to diplomacy and wants to be more deeply tied to the West.
Before Montino confirmed his visit to China, Argentina, which refused to join the BRICS, formally applied to become a global partner of NATO. Argentine Defense Minister Petri posted on social media that he had submitted a letter of intent to NATO Deputy Secretary-General Gewana, expressing Argentina's request to become a global partner of the group.
He also said Argentina would continue to work to restore diplomatic relations in order to modernize its military and train it according to NATO standards. Gewana welcomed Argentina's application, but noted that any formal decision on the status of a "global partner" would require consensus among all 32 NATO members. However, the organization has not yet given a clear answer on whether it agrees with Argentina to become a global partner of NATO. But the U.S. has already stated its intention to provide Argentina with $40 million in financing.
At present, there are various indications that Argentina intends to distance itself from China and try to strengthen ties with the United States and NATO members, which will lead to many uncertainties in the prospects of China-Arab cooperation, which is not in the common interests of the two countries. Therefore, it is hoped that Milley and his government will correct their stance and promote the sustained and healthy development of China-Arab relations.