BEIJING, February 18. /TASS/. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has met with his Argentine counterpart Diana Mondino on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference and called for greater cooperation between the countries.
"The deepening of Chinese-Argentine cooperation would be in the interests of both countries. It is the common expectation of the two peoples," Wang Yi was quoted as saying in a statement on the website of the Chinese Foreign Ministry.
He said Beijing and Buenos Aires had earlier signed a memorandum of understanding on the joint implementation of China's Belt and Road economic initiative.
"Improving the linkage between the [China’s and Argentina's] development strategies will open up broader prospects for mutually beneficial cooperation," Wang Yi said.
He noted that there are no unresolved historical problems or real conflicts between the two countries.
"The relationship between the two countries is quite mature and strong," he said.
The Chinese minister said Beijing is ready to work with Buenos Aires to "strengthen mutual trust, deepen cooperation and jointly push China-Argentina relations to the next level."
Argentina’s new President Javier Milei, who took office in December, has repeatedly stated that he does not seek to develop relations with Brazil, China, and Russia because he disagrees with their policies, but he also said he will not prevent private companies from doing business with these nations.
In late December, Mondino conceded that the Milei government was partly guided by ideological considerations in refusing to join BRICS, and said Argentina's new leadership considers "liberal democracies" as its priority partners, such as the US, European countries, Australia, Israel, Canada and New Zealand. But she did not rule out the possibility of developing trade and economic relations with other countries.