Vice Minister Zhang Zhili and Sergio Iraeta, Secretary of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries under Argentina's Ministry of Economy, co-chaired the Fifth Meeting of the China-Argentina Joint Committee on Agriculture in Buenos Aires on April 14. The two sides reviewed agricultural cooperation progress since the fourth meeting in 2019, and discussed key issues of mutual concern and priorities for future bilateral cooperation. 

Vice Minister Zhang stated that agriculture plays a crucial role in China-Argentina bilateral relations. In recent years, China-Argentina agricultural cooperation has moved in a good direction and generated fruitful results. Cooperation mechanisms have functioned smoothly, agricultural investment and trade have expanded rapidly, people-to-people exchanges have intensified, and science and technology exchanges have become increasingly vibrant,presenting broad prospects for the future. China stands ready to work with Argentina to fully implement the Strategic Action Plan for Agricultural Cooperation (2022-2027), further broaden cooperation areas, develop practical cooperation projects, jointly cultivate new growth drivers, and elevate both technological innovation and agricultural development. 

Secretary Iraeta spoke highly of the steadily advancing agricultural relations between Argentina and China and agreed with Vice Minister Zhang on priorities for future bilateral cooperation. He said that the Argentine side is willing to strengthen cooperation and exchanges with China under the framework of the comprehensive strategic partnership, to achieve further progress in Argentina-China agricultural cooperation. 

During his stay in Argentina, Vice Minister Zhang also visited local enterprises engaged in dairy processing, grain and oil trade, and biotechnology, among other sectors.