BUENOS AIRES – Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong will make his first working visit to Buenos Aires, Argentina, from Wednesday (Nov 28) to Saturday (Dec 1), during which he will attend the Group of 20 (G-20) Leaders’ Summit.

The visit, made at the invitation of Argentinian President Mauricio Macri, will focus on strengthening economic cooperation between the two countries.

PM Lee will be hosted to breakfast by President Macri on Thursday, before meeting Buenos Aires Senator Esteban Bullrich and the city’s mayor Horacio Rodriguez Larreta.

The G-20 summit begins on Friday amid a tit-for-tat trade war between the United States and China, whose leaders are expected to meet during the summit weekend.

At the summit, PM Lee will take part in discussions on the theme “Building consensus for fair and sustainable development”, which the group has adopted under Argentina’s presidency this year, said the Prime Minister’s Office in a statement on Tuesday (Nov 27).

PM Lee will also have bilateral meetings with leaders of other countries on the sidelines of the summit.

Singapore is not a member of the G-20, a group which comprises the world’s 20 largest developed and developing economies. They make up about two-thirds of the world’s population and three-quarters of world trade.

But it has been invited to this year’s summit as a representative of Asean, which Singapore chairs this year. It will also convey the views of the Global Governance Group (3G), an informal group of 30 small and medium-sized countries that aims to promote greater transparency and inclusivity in the G-20 process.

The Republic has been invited to previous summits as a representative of 3G.

Six other countries that have been invited as well are Chile, Jamaica, the Netherlands, Rwanda, Senegal and Spain.

PM Lee will be accompanied by Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan and Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat, as well as senior officials from the Prime Minister’s Office, Foreign Affairs Ministry and Finance Ministry.

During PM Lee’s absence, Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean will be Acting Prime Minister from Nov 27 to Dec 3.

Source: Read Full Article