Urrejola says the Visa Waiver Program is under review by the US, but ‘we are on the right track’

This morning, The United States Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken, met in La Moneda with President Gabriel Borek and Secretary of State, Antonia Origola, As part of his tour of the Southern Cone.

On the occasion, they discussed issues related to bilateral and regional relations, In addition to agreeing that both gender and environmental issues – and in particular the declaration signed at the recent Summit of the Americas on Ocean Protection – are priorities for both countries.

During the press conference, Minister Origola noted the uncertainty that exists Regarding the continuation of the Visa Waiver Extension Program And although he indicated that it was not one of the topics discussed in the meeting with Blinken, there was a plan that was agreed upon with the United States to evaluate it.

He explained that the evaluation of visa programs is something that the state does on a permanent basis for all participating countries and that it is not only for Chile.

“We’re working in a very coordinated way, in fact, the consular director in Washington these days was in a meeting with the Department of Homeland Security to find out about various related issues and we’re on the right track,” Origola said.

For his part, Blinken noted that Chile is the only Latin American country that participates in the program and that “We want to keep it and our team is working towards it and I’m confident we’ll make it.”

Investing in Chile

The US Secretary of State also referred to investment opportunities in the country. He said during the conference that since the signing of the first trade agreement between the two countries, there has been a “significant increase” in trade.

“Now at nearly US$32 billion annually, the United States is the main provider of FDI in Chile, so the relationship is really strong, both on the commercial side and on the investment side.

He also stressed that this relationship can be “strengthened”, as in the region, such as the Association signed at the Summit of the Americas, among which, among other measures, it is proposed to create strong supply chains in. Western hemisphere.

Blinken highlighted Chile’s leadership in climate matters and that there is a future in investments in clean technology and jobs in the green economy. “Chile is very well positioned to provide many of these jobs, and we’re here to talk about that today, we’re looking at ways to generate more American investment.And the We have already done a lot, but there is still a lot to do“, pointed out.

The foreign minister noted that both countries have a “solid base”, but there is still much to be done. “We stand on the same perspective, which is the need to do this in an inclusive way and really try to bring growth to everyone, not just some. This is a shared approach of our two governments.”