- Title: ARGENTINA: Ecuador throw support behind Argentina in battle with "vulture funds"
- Date: 4th December 2012
- Summary: BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA (DECEMBER 04, 2012) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF ECUADOREAN PRESIDENT RAFAEL CORREA ARRIVING TO THE ARGENTINE PRESIDENTIAL PALACE WITH MILITARY HONOURS ARGENTINE PRESIDENT CRISTINA FERNANDEZ WAITING TO GREET CORREA CORREA WALKING TOWARDS FERNANDEZ AND WAIVING TO CROWD FERNANDEZ AND CORREA SHAKING HANDS OUTSIDE THE PRESIDENTIAL PALACE (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) ECUADOREAN PRESIDENT RAFAEL CORREA, SAYING: "[We give] all of our support to this brave and head-on fight that Nestor (Kirchner) started, and which the talented Cristina has continued, against the capital, the whole speculative financial system. Countries have the obligation and the right to renegotiate spurious debt. It can't be that the most infamous are rewarded in a judicial system that always puts capital before our people, before our countries." FERNANDEZ AT THE PODIUM (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) ARGENTINE PRESIDENT CRISTINA FERNANDEZ, SAYING: "I think the time has come to make room for different instruments in our own region that follow the law and are within our own norms and assure the region, South America. So that everything earned this decade in inclusion, in progress and everything that is better, isn't lost because they want to transfer the crisis, or because the crisis in the central countries that they can't resolve by themselves, some way or anotherup reaching us." CORREA AND FERNANDEZ ENTERING CONFERENCE ROOM TO SIGN ACCORDS ARGENTINE FOREIGN MINISTER HECTOR TIMERMAN AND ECUADORIAN FOREIGN MINISTER RICARDO PATINO FERNANDEZ AND CORREA DURING THE SIGNING CEREMONY
- Embargoed: 19th December 2012 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Argentina
- Country: Argentina
- Topics: Politics
- Reuters ID: LVA1OMXJJHUMD7HIPIWQ6UUGCQ7E
- Story Text: Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa on Tuesday (December 4) voiced his support for Argentine President Cristina Fernandez as her country battles holdout creditors seeking a debt payment of $1.33 billion dollars.
Holdout creditors have sought to force Argentina to deposit the money by December 10 while the country appeals last month's order by U.S. District Judge Thomas Griesa that it pay the creditors in full.
For the last decade, Argentina and its holdout creditors have sparred in U.S. courts over the country's 2002 debt default.
The creditors are suing to be repaid in full after spurning two debt swap offers accepted by about 93 percent of bondholders.
The holdouts, including U.S. hedge fund Elliott Management, have won several billion dollars in court-awarded damages. But they have collected very little since Argentina refuses to pay and U.S. sovereign immunity laws protect most of its assets from seizure.
President Cristina Fernandez, a combative centre-leftist, has vowed she will never pay the holdouts but will keep honouring the bonds issued to other investors during the 2005 and 2010 restructurings.
Correa backed Fernandez and her late husband and predecessor as president, Nestor Kirchner, in their struggle against the creditors.
"[We give] all of our support to this brave and head-on fight that Nestor (Kirchner) started, and which the talented Cristina has continued, against the capital, the whole speculative financial system. Countries have the obligation and the right to renegotiate spurious debt. It can't be that the most infamous are rewarded in a judicial system that always puts capital before our people, before our countries," Correa said.
Buenos Aires says it will not comply because its own laws bar it from paying the holdouts, which would put the onus on U.S. banks and other third parties that process Argentine debt payments to enforce the court orders.
Argentina has appealed and vowed to take its case to the U.S. Supreme Court if necessary.
Fernandez pushed for further integration with her South American neighbours as a counter to financing from developed countries especially as Europe struggles to emerge from its own financial crisis.
"I think the time has come to make room for different instruments in our own region that follow the law and are within our own norms and assure the region, South America. So that everything earned this decade in inclusion, in progress and everything that is better, isn't lost because they want to transfer the crisis, or because the crisis in the central countries that they can't resolve by themselves, some way or anotherup reaching us," Fernandez said.
Argentina has called the holdout creditors "vultures" and vowed never to pay them.
The holdouts had filed a motion in a U.S. appeals court seeking a security deposit of at least $250 million dollars be made to show Argentina was acting in good faith with the court.
On Tuesday the court refused to order Argentina to post a security deposit while it seeks to overturn the lower court ruling that ordered it to pay the $1.33 billion.
Argentina next owes money on its restructured debt in March 2013. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2012. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
