On July 2, 2013, the Ministers of Defense from Argentina (engineer Agustín Rossi) and Ecuador (María Fernanda Espinosa, Ph. D.) as well as the Minister of Transport and Public Works from Ecuador (architect María de los Ángeles Duarte) visited the headquarters of INVAP S.E. (an Argentine state-owned Applied Research Company) in the town of San Carlos de Bariloche.
The visitors were welcomed by the Governor of the Province of Río Negro, Alberto Weretilneck, together with National Senator Miguel Ángel Pichetto, National Deputy Silvina García Larraburu, Ph. D., the Secretary-General of the Province of Río Negro, Hugo Lastra, the President of the Board of Directors of INVAP S.E. Horacio Osuna, and its General Manager, Héctor Otheguy, Ph. D., among other authorities.
The delegation’s visit gave rise to a series of meetings and gatherings whose main objectives were to strengthen bilateral relations between Latin American countries as regards defense, and to design a joint plan for these countries “to excel at their scientific knowledge”.
While touring INVAP’s installations, the delegates had the chance to know about the technical capabilities of Argentina in the fields of defense and aerospace activities. In the first place, they went to San Carlos de Bariloche International Airport to see the radar testing platforms, especially the first Argentine primary scan radar which is in its final testing stage for being accepted, as well as a modern version of the TP-S43. Then they visited the company headquarters, particularly the Satellite Integration Building and the clean-rooms where is kept the ARSAT-1, the first Argentine telecommunication satellite which will be launched on April 2014. Finally, the delegation toured the Conventional Integration Building, where defense projects concerning the development of primary and secondary radars for airspace surveillance and control are carried out.
After the guided visit, the authorities from Argentine and Ecuador held a press conference in which the Minister Rossi highlighted the national production in this area and the Latin American integration stating: “On this occasion, we informed our Ecuadorean peers about the scientific and technological activities carried out in Argentina and told them that our aim is that professionals from both countries could be able to work together. We want to share information with those who have the same Latin American commitment. Our goal is to show the potential development in this field and to encourage other countries, such as Ecuador, to follow the same course.”
On her part, the Minister Espinosa affirmed that “As a Latin American, I feel proud for what we have seen here,” and added: “Our mutual commitment is to improve our bonds of brotherhood and strengthen our friendship. This visit to Argentina has been remarkably fruitful to show how Latin American countries must become “countries that excel at their scientific knowledge” by sharing the best of each with the rest.”
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