Chinese President Xi Jinping met with President Alberto Fernández of Argentina on Sunday, on the sidelines of the opening ceremony of the Beijing Winter Olympic Games. During the meeting, Fernández announced that his country was officially joining China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
Formalising the decision, both sides released a joint statement on Deepening the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and signed a series of cooperation documents including the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Cooperation within the Framework of the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road Initiative. According to reports, Chinese financing will be given to Buenos Aires in two instalments of $14 billion and $9.7 billion under the terms of the agreement.
The MoU aims to promote the construction of the BRI in Argentina and cooperation in fields such as “policy communication, connectivity, unimpeded trade, financial integration, people-to-people exchanges, and third-party markets, the National Development and Reform Commission,” state-owned media house Global Times said, citing “China’s top economic planner.”
According to a press release by the Chinese Foreign Ministry, President Xi stressed the need for both countries to pursue high-quality cooperation through the BRI, efficiently implement “existing major projects on hydro-power and railway, and deepen cooperation in areas like trade, agriculture, energy, mining, infrastructure, investment, financing, and COVID-19 response.” Xi also called on Buenos Aires to deepen cooperation in the digital economy and green development.
Argentina joined China’s BRI and is set to receive funding worth $23.7B for various projects from Beijing. The deal was signed during Argentine President Alberto Fernandez’s visit to China to attend the Beijing Winter Olympics. Who said the Olympics are about games ONLY?? pic.twitter.com/28AVtGiRFS
— Dr. David Oualaalou (@DOualaalou) February 6, 2022
For his part, Fernández assured that his government will actively participate in promoting the BRI and deepen cooperation with Beijing in trade, agriculture, and infrastructure.
The BRI was first launched by China in 2013 by President Xi Jinping to finance projects mainly in energy, telecommunications and transportation sectors across Africa, Asia, and Europe. So far, 138 countries have joined the BRI. According to a report produced by global economic consultants Cebr and sponsored by the CIOB, the BRI is likely to boost the world's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by $7.1 trillion per annum by 2040.
Wang Youming, director of the Institute of Developing Countries at the China Institute of International Studies in Beijing, noted that the BRI will help economic development through infrastructure construction. “The BRI is a pragmatic aid to help Latin American countries to advance their economic recovery, not a political tool for great power rivalry,” he told Global Times.
Argentina’s announcement comes as this year marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between both countries. To honour the milestone, the leaders also launched the 2022 Year of China-Argentina Friendship and Cooperation, which will “promote active exchanges in culture, education, sports, media, youth affairs” and “enhance the people-to-people connectivity.”