The 13^th meeting of the Joint Committee between Argentina and the European Union took place in Buenos Aires, in line with the 1990 Framework Agreement on Trade and Economic Cooperation.

A wide range of issues of mutual interest were addressed, confirming the strength of the bilateral relationship and the potential for closer ties in the future. Both sides reiterated their commitment to strengthening the bilateral relationship between the European Union and Argentina.

The European Union and Argentina reaffirmed their commitment to democracy, the rule of law, the protection and promotion of human rights, in all their aspects, and their firm support of international law. On the multilateral scene, both sides strongly supported a rules-based international order and an effective multilateral system.

The Joint Committee discussed current foreign policy issues. Argentina and the European Union reaffirmed their unequivocal support to Ukraine, faced with Russia’s war of aggression, and welcomed the positive results of the recent Peace Summit in Switzerland. Both sides condemned Hamas’ attacks on Israel of 7 October 2023 and expressed concern about the current humanitarian situation in Gaza.

Both parties confirmed their commitment to cooperation between the two regions, mainly through the dialogue between the European Union and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), and to working to ensure that the 2025 EU-CELAC Summit in Colombia delivers concrete results for the benefit of the population of both continents. 

The Parties agreed to deepen their global defence and security cooperation, to explore the possibility of establishing a structured dialogue between the European Union and Argentina on these issues, and to consider the possible involvement of Argentina in peace-keeping missions led by the European Union.

Both sides noted the deepening of relations on energy and raw materials (with a focus on lithium) following the signature of the respective Memoranda of Understanding in 2023 and progress in developing implementation roadmaps. The parties welcomed the imminent visit of the European Commissioner for Energy, Kadri Simson, to Argentina, which would make it possible to deepen this cooperation.

On sustainable development, Argentina and the European Union agreed to promote decarbonisation strategies jointly, as well as Nationally Determined Contributions compatible with a 1.5 C temperature limit scenario, in line with the Paris Agreement and the Dubai Global Stocktake, and to advance on the adaptation and means of implementation pillars of the Paris Agreement and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. They also committed to maintaining a high level of ambition at the upcoming UN Climate Change Conferences of the Parties to be held in Baku (COP29) in November 2024 and in Belém (COP30) in November 2025. With regard to COP29, they expressed their intention to work together towards the adoption of the new collective quantified climate finance target that responds to the changing priorities and needs of developing countries. Both Parties confirmed their interest in progressing towards closer bilateral cooperation on oceanic matters, and they committed to ratifying the ‘Agreement on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction’ in the near future, and to achieving the objective of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources to create a representative system of marine protected areas around the Antarctic. There was also an exchange on the presentation of the objectives of the Convention on Biological Diversity before COP 16 and on the EU Deforestation Regulation.

The Joint Committee allowed both parties to confirm their commitment to combating transnational organised crime. In the area of judicial cooperation, the European Union reiterated its proposal to negotiate with Argentina an agreement allowing operational cooperation with Eurojust. Both sides highlighted the common values they share, in particular on data protection, which has made it possible to recognise Argentina as an adequate destination for cross-border data flows, which facilitates bilateral trade.

Argentina and the European Union agreed on the importance of strengthening cooperation on research and innovation. They also welcomed Argentina’s willingness to strengthen its participation in the Horizon Europe programme and participation in the Alliance for Ocean Research and Innovation, as an opportunity to cooperate on the Atlantic and Antarctic Oceans. The Parties committed to deepening their cooperation on space at multilateral and bilateral level. The development of the 2023 Copernicus Administrative Arrangement will allow the Argentine Space Agency (CONAE) to sign Operational Technical Agreements with the European Space Agency and the European Centre for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT) to achieve better access to Copernicus data in Argentina. In turn, the Argentine Space Agency will provide in-situ local data to Copernicus services.

The Joint Committee took note of the outcome of the meeting on trade & economic issues, held on 6 June 2024. The meeting highlighted the progress made in recent years, resulting in a more diverse and strategic economic and trade agenda. New developments on multilateral negotiations were discussed, in particular Argentina’s accession process to the OECD. Argentina outlined the ViSEC initiative to ensure the traceability of soy and meat, considered by the EU as a key tool for deforestation-free supply chains. Argentina expressed interest in exchanging experiences on best digital practices to facilitate trade. Both sides agreed to continue working to ensure the free flow of bilateral trade and to avoid or resolve possible obstacles to trade.

They reiterated their wish to finalise the negotiations on the EU-Mercosur Agreement, recognising that it would be the best way to boost bilateral relations, to foster integration between the two regions and a mutually beneficial source of investment and jobs.

The Joint Committee took note of the outcome of the meeting on cooperation held on 28 June 2024, which demonstrated the high level of convergence of interests and priorities for joint work, as well as the breadth of topics and the diversity of actors covered by the rich bilateral agenda. The interest in deepening cooperation was underlined, as well as of continuing programmes that have yielded very positive results. This also recognised the huge opportunities that the Global Gateway Investment Agenda presents for Argentina, particularly on topics such as the lithium value chain, and renewable hydrogen. The meeting allowed taking stock of the most relevant flagship projects of cooperation in the priority areas of the Green Deal and Digitalisation and regional cooperation programmes such as EuroClima, Al-Invest and EL PACcTO 2 – between others – and both sides welcomed Argentina’s active participation in them.

The European Union and Argentina welcomed the recent signature in Barbados of the Memorandum of Understanding between stakeholders from the European Union and Latin America and the Caribbean on Disaster Risk Management. The European Union will appreciate that Mercosur sign this Memorandum when circumstances permit.

The Argentine Government appreciated the continuation of the dialogue with the European Union on the issue of the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas). The European Union took note of the Argentine position, based on the importance of dialogue and respect for international law in the peaceful settlement of disputes.

The Argentine delegation was led by the Undersecretary for Foreign Policy, Marcia Levaggi, and the European Union delegation was led by the Managing Director for the Americas of the European External Action Service, Brian Glynn. The Joint Committee was preceded by meetings on human rights (28 May 2024), economic and trade issues (6 June 2024) and cooperation (28 June 2024).

The wealth and breadth of the discussions and of the agenda speak for the strength of the bilateral relationship and its growth potential. The Parties agreed to meet again in 2026, in Brussels.