The second day of the state visit focused on the economic ties between Norway and Argentina. Norway had a significant trade delegation with them in which everything from airlines to official Norway was represented. The interests of Norwegian companies in Argentina are mainly related to the maritime sector or the oil and gas industry. However, at the same time, there is also an increasing interest in communications technology and the IT sector, aquaculture, aquaculture and the aviation industry.
Argentinian media have shown a great interest in the Norwegian state visit, and the Argentinian newspaper Clarins has written several articles regarding the fact that it was Queen Sonja who opened the big business seminar in Buenos Aires. The paper refers to this as “a strong signal for gender equality,” and writes to its readers that women have leading positions in Norway. “Both the Prime Minister and several of the central ministers are women,” the newspaper writes. The title of the seminar that the Queen opened is “A New Partnership for Creating Values.”
Her Majesty the Queen chose to focus on women’s roles in Argentina. The Queen said, “This leads me to another issue close to my heart: Equality between men and women. There have been many brave women whose work and deeds have had great impact on both our countries… Women must have the same chance to contribute to, and benefit from, this new wave of modernisation. And this must also apply to the positions at the top level.”
The Norwegian royals have managed to have a good relationship with the Argentine president and his wife. Photo: Sven G. Gjeruldsen / The Royal Court.
The Argentinian government has said that they prioritise attracting investment from abroad and have implemented many reforms to open this up. One thing Argentina has established is the Norwegian-Argentine Chamber of Commerce which is an independent organisation that has been working to promote bilateral cooperation between Argentina and Norway since 2008.
The seminar “Norway and Argentina – Antarctic pioneers” took place at the Argentine Foreign Ministry. Norway and Argentina have common political interests in Antarctica, where Norway and Argentina control large parts of the continent. This was a theme on one of the meetings that were held today and the King started the meeting with a short speech.
His Majesty King said, “I am pleased with Norway and Argentina’s joint efforts in the Antarctic Treaty system to protect the environment and increase our knowledge. And I welcome the agreement signed during our visit to increase even further our bilateral cooperation in this important area.”
In the afternoon, the King and Queen participated in a ceremony where they threw flowers down into the “Rio de la Plata” or “River of the Silver” in the Parque de la Memoria Memorial Park. This they did to honour the victims of the former Argentinian military regime.
In a solemn ceremony at Plaza de Noruega, King Harald and Queen Sonja also received the city keys of Buenos Aires from the city’s mayor. After this, Their Majesties took a significant period of time to talk to the Norwegians who are living and working in Argentina. The second day of the visit was completed with a dinner that the King and Queen hosted at El Zanjón de Granados.
