PRAVDA / RIA Novosti, Russia
June 25 2004

Argentine Foreign Minister arrives in Russia to give economic
cooperation a boost

11:39 2004-06-25
One of the goals of the Argentine Foreign Minister’s current visit to
Moscow is to boost economic cooperation between his country and
Russia.

Speaking at a news conference in Moscow, Rafael Antonio Bielsa said
the Argentine government’s current confidence-building measures were
aimed at getting the national economy out of a deep crisis. Argentina
is trying to make its trade policy predictable and to rise investor
confidence, the minister said, expressing hope that his country’s
relations with Russia would benefit from these steps.

Russian and Argentine officials will sign a framework agreement on
the use of nuclear power for peaceful purposes at a special ceremony
Friday, Mr Bielsa revealed to the media. “One of a Russo-Argentine
joint venture’s senior executives is currently visiting Moscow, and
[cooperation in the] nuclear energy [industry] will be discussed
within the framework of the 2nd Russia-Argentine business forum, now
underway in Moscow,” the minister said.

Mr Bielsa said President Nestor Kirchner had asked him to convey an
invitation for Vladimir Putin. The Argentine government is working
hard to make the Russian leader’s visit possible before the end of
this year, he added.

At a ceremony in Argentina’s Embassy, national Argentine awards were
presented to Russian politicians and people in the arts who had made
outstanding contributions to the promotion of cooperation and
friendship between the two nations. The awardees included former
world chess champion Anatoli Karpov, Armenian community activist Ara
Abramyan, and choreographer Igor Moiseyev.

In his acceptance speech, the 98-year-old Moiseyev said: “Being in
love with Argentina as I am, I feel deeply moved, and will take your
award of honor close to heart. That you have taken notice of my
endeavors inspires me to continue working, however challenging this
may turn out to be for me.”
From: Baghdasarian