Argentina slams U.S. ruling on repayment to foreign creditorsNovember 24, 2012 - 15:28 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Argentina will appeal against a U.S. ruling ordering it to pay $1.3bn to foreign creditors holding bonds that it defaulted on in 2001, according to BBC News. The government has until December 15 to reimburse the hedge funds, which shunned two exchanges of defaulted debt in 2005 and 2010. But Economy Minister Hernan Lorenzino rejected the decision, saying it was illegitimate to pay "vulture funds". Argentina defaulted on $100bn of bonds in 2001, a record amount at the time. But by 2003 a recovery was under way, and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) agreed to a new loan. Since then, Argentina has restructured its massive debt twice, offering creditors new bonds for the defaulted ones. Lorenzino said the government was prepared to take its appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. "We'll fight all decisions that are against the interests of our country," he said. President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner said her government would not pay a single dollar. While her administration has reimbursed the money borrowed from the IMF, Mrs Fernandez considers the bond debt illegitimate. Some analysts say the hedge funds' legal victory has raised fears Argentina could be plunged into yet another debt default. Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | Putin congratulates Pashinyan’s birthday Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on his birthday on June 1. Opposition motorcade en route to Gyumri for large rally A motorcade of protesters headed by Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan is heading to the city of Gyumri. Ruling MPs, Foreign Minister talk Armenia-Azerbaijan processes MOs from the ruling Civil Contract party met with the Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan in the Armenian parliament. Russia: Armenia’s frozen membership weakens CSTO position in Caucasus A Russian envoy said any step that could alienate the CSTO member states from each other is “deeply wrong”. |