The meeting between Xi Jinping and Javier Milei finally took place on November 19, in Rio de Janeiro, where they were participating in the G20 Summit “Everyone left happy and content,” said an Argentine source, jokingly but seriously, to reflect the atmosphere of the meeting.
The Argentine Presidency sought to highlight the trade and economic aspect of the dialogue, and the Chinese stressed the need to maintain “the achievements achieved” and focus on the “future” to promote “a lasting and stable development of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between China and Argentina ” for mutual benefit.
“China expressed interest in increasing trade with the Argentine Republic, and Argentina expressed a desire to increase the supply of exports to the Chinese market (where Argentina has a strong deficit). Both nations agreed to continue working to strengthen their commercial ties and for the development of joint projects that benefit both economies. During the session, current commercial and financial ties and agreements were reaffirmed, as well as the vocation to continue exploring new opportunities to expand and improve everything that involves strengthening. of the bilateral relationship”, says the statement issued by Argentine spokesman Manuel Adorni about the meeting, in which – he stated – there was talk of increasing “constructive cooperation and the expansion of commercial relations between the two countries”.
A source with knowledge of the matter also indicated that Milei accepted Xi Jinping’s invitation to travel to China in the context of the summit of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (Celac) and China, which is being organized for 2025, but which is still does not have a set date.
The Argentine statement, in turn, had a similar tone to China’s. He communicated “a formal invitation to President Milei to visit China and, in return, President Milei extended a formal invitation to President Xi Jinping to visit Argentina”.
Among the priorities is the implementation of projects. For China, it is very important that Milei reactivates Chinese investments that have been stopped, such as the Santa Cruz hydroelectric plants, and that strategic projects in public services, energy and mining are not harmed.
The international community is convinced that President Milei will follow Donald Trump’s “script”. But due to Argentina’s size and presence in Latin America, the country needs China. In this sense, although Beijing agrees to extend the renewal of the currency swap between the two countries, before taking any measures, China is awaiting approval from the Monetary Fund for its own programs with Argentina.