In a sparkling Bosch Palace and with more than a thousand guests, Marc Stanley celebrated 200 years of the relationship between the two countries: “the United States government is committed to a long-term relationship” with Argentina.
The calendar of patriotic festivities is not only elastic in Argentina: this Monday, under the cold of the Buenos Aires sunset, the United States embassy received more than a thousand guests to celebrate Independence Day, which is July 4. Under a tent on whose roof digital works of art were projected, the ambassador Mark Stanley recalled that, as Joe Biden told Alberto Fernández in their last meeting, “the United States government is committed to a long-term relationship” with Argentina.
There was no room for a pin in the stately rooms of the beautiful Bosch Palace, Stanley’s residence that looked to the nines. Catering employees juggled distributing drinks, meat pies, and sandwiches, dodging groups of passers-by whose only topic was the upcoming election.
The anxiety may have been due to none of the presidential candidates attended the cocktailbusy with events and meetings after the closing of the electoral lists. Neither did front-line government officials approach.
On the other hand, several candidates for deputies were seen. the radical Karina Banfi chatted friendly with the “lilito” Juan Manuel Lopez, although they remained on opposing lists for the PASO: Banfi seconded Cristian Ritondo on Patricia Bullrich’s payroll, and López was part of Horacio Rodríguez Larreta’s squad. Below, attentive to the ambassador’s speech, Marcela Campagnoli and his collaborators could sense each other in the gloom of the tent, to the beat of the live music that Kevin Johansen gave after Stanley’s speech.
Not everyone could hear him: inside the Palace, on the ground floor, crowding the stairs and lounges, guests didn’t even move far to the bars where drinks and a tender barbecue pulled pork sandwich with coleslaw sauce were offered.
There were businessmen, politicians, soldiers, policemen, trade unionists -Gerardo Martinez, Jose Luis Lingeri-, directors of civil entities -such as Jorge Knovlobitsfrom DAIA-, journalists and representatives of diplomatic delegations from many countries.
The Judiciary also contributed a good delegation, with the chambermaids of the Federal Cassation Diego Barroetaveña, Mariano Borinsky and Daniel Petrone; the investigating judges Sebastián Casanello, María Eugenia Capuchetti and Julián Ercolini, or the president of the Association of Magistrates, Marcelo Gallo Tagle.
Between them, the conversations revolved around only two topics: Sergio Massa’s aggressive sprint to win the presidential candidacy of the ruling party and the violent internal opposition between Larreta and Bullrich. Nobody imagines with what band-aid the wounds that are being caused between the two can be covered.
“In my country, we celebrate the 4th of July with barbecues, fireworks, concerts and time with family and friends,” Stanley reflected in his brief speech, after the presentation of an always correct Iván de Pineda.
“But not only that. It is also important to use this day to reflect on values such as democracy, freedom, and our responsibility as citizens. I think I am very lucky to represent my country in Argentina, a nation that shares these values And we have shared them in all the 200 years of bilateral relationship and friendship that we celebrate this year.”
Since, in addition to celebrating American independence, the heart of the party was to celebrate the 200 years of the relationship between the United States and Argentina, Stanley reviewed the fruits of that bond: “educational exchanges, the protection of human and labor rights, the strengthening of democratic institutions, innovations in health, agriculture, space exploration, energy and technology.”
The ambassador also expressed his solidarity with the suffering of the Ukrainian people due to the Russian “brutal invasion”, and promised that “we will continue working with Argentina and other nations of the world to put an end to the aggression and the violation of human rights by Russian forces.”
In closing, Stanley attempted a joke announcing the presence of “Mr. Liro Messi“: “I’m sorry, that was a joke. But she is coming to Miami!”, she puffed out her chest.
