VZCZCXYZ1553
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHBU #0495/01 1081545
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 171545Z APR 08
FM AMEMBASSY BUENOS AIRES
TO SECSTATE WASHDC 0800

UNCLAS BUENOS AIRES 000495 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL BEXP EINV ENRG EPET ETRD SOCI AR
SUBJECT: ARGENTINA: AMBASSADOR DISCUSSES HARVARD TRIP, DOW 
CHEMICAL, AND FDI WITH MAYOR OF BAHIA BLANCA 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary: The Ambassador met April 15 with the mayor 
of Bahia Blanca, Cristian Breitenstein, who had recently 
returned from a brief course of study at Harvard University. 
Young, dynamic and pro-American, Breitenstein identified 
priorities for his first full term in office, including 
expanding the city's role in the global marketplace based on 
shipping port traffic and significant foreign direct 
investment, including that from Dow Chemical, which is 
celebrating 50 years of doing business in Argentina.  The 
Ambassador said that he saw opportunities for cooperation 
with Bahia Blanca on initiatives such as youth programs and 
corporate social responsibility, and noted the pending visit 
of the aircraft carrier USS George Washington as a chance to 
highlight the relationship.  End Summary. 
 
¶2. (U) Background: Bahia Blanca, home to one of Argentina's 
major ports, is a city of over 300,000 people in the 
southwest of the province of Buenos Aires.  The port has been 
a key factor in the city's significant economic growth over 
the past five years.  There are currently seven daily flights 
between Buenos Aires and Bahia Blanca.  The city is home to 
three universities, several museums, and major Dow Chemical 
plants for production of ethylene and polyethylene.  It is 
also the birthplace of San Antonio Spurs star Manu Ginobili, 
a national sports hero for his exploits in the NBA. 
 
¶3. (U) Breitenstein began his mayoral career by serving out 
the last two years of his predecessor's term following the 
former mayor's premature departure due to corruption charges. 
 As Chair of the City Council, he was next in the line of 
succession.  He was on a one year leave of absence as chair 
studying in Germany at the time and received a call from the 
presidential palace, the Casa Rosada, to return to Argentina 
and take over mayoral duties in Bahia Blanca.  He has since 
been reelected and is now serving his first full term in 
office at the age of 35.  He gave the impression of a dynamic 
young leader on the way up the ladder but also very 
pro-business and pro-U.S.  He noted too that Bahia Blanca 
voted heavily for the opposition in the last election. 
 
Harvard, Boston, and the US 
--------------------------- 
 
¶4. (U) Breitenstein explained that he had recently returned 
from a short study course at Harvard.  He said he found great 
value in the Harvard course, having had the time to network 
with other mayors and ministers, in addition to meeting the 
Dean of the university.  He enjoyed Boston, took in a Celtics 
game, and looked forward to an upcoming trip to Jacksonville, 
Florida, which is a sister city of Bahia Blanca. 
 
Mayor's Priority - Continued Economic Growth 
-------------------------------------------- 
 
¶5. (SBU) The Mayor explained that his number one priority is 
continued growth through expansion of Bahia Blanca's role in 
the global economy.  He expects continued foreign direct 
investment from countries such as France and Germany and 
ongoing growth in port traffic.  Dow Chemical in particular 
has made significant investments locally, and will be 
celebrating its 50th year of doing business in Argentina on 
April 16.  He said the Spanish energy company Repsol is 
currently working out the details of building a liquid 
natural gas regasification plant, and that private interests 
will soon begin funding an expansion of Bahia Blanca's 
airport so that it may expand the number of flights to and 
from Buenos Aires, currently at seven flights a day.  Grain 
company Louis Dreyfus is also a large investor in the city. 
 
Youth and Volunteer Programs 
---------------------------- 
 
¶6. (U) Breitenstein stated that in addition to the Ginobili 
Foundation, Bahia Blanca has hundreds of youth and volunteer 
organizations, ranging from sports clubs to social work.  He 
said that basketball was especially popular, calling Bahia 
Blanca "the Harlem of South America," with many children 
playing the sport very proficiently and from a very young 
age.  The Mayor noted with pride that 10 percent of the 
population was involved in some type of social service 
organization, and that volunteering had been an integral part 
of the city's culture long before the crisis in 2001. 
Ambassador promoted educational exchanges with the United 
States as a valuable opportunity for young people in Bahia 
Blanca, and offered post's resources to improve cultural 
understanding between the youth of Argentina and the U.S. 
The Ambassador also reviewed post efforts to boost and 
support corporate social responsibility efforts in Argentina, 
particularly those of U.S. companies. 
 
Sister Cities 
-------------- 
 
 
¶7. (U) In response to Ambassador's query about size and scope 
of sister-city relationships, the Mayor responded that Bahia 
Blanca currently had such ties with a number of cities around 
the globe, including Cienfuegos, Cuba; Dalian, China; Fermo, 
Italy; Jacksonville, Florida; and Talcahuano, Chile among 
others.  Breitenstein saw these as a way "to show Bahia 
Blanca to the world and the world to Bahia Blanca," as well 
as spur economic growth.  He will soon be visiting 
Jacksonville and seeks ways to leverage these ties which span 
the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.  Ambassador noted that 
Bariloche, a major adventure sports destination in Argentina, 
is taking advantage of the sports medicine knowledge of 
sister city Aspen, Colorado through medical exchanges. 
WAYNE