Lacunza has washed his hands with an external debt | The …

Finance Minister Hernán Lacunza said that "there is no time to waste on renegotiating external debt with creditors". For the civil servant, this process must be rapid and be done through a voluntary and non-forced exchange.

In the face of controversy over whether or not the next debt restructuring should include a withdrawal of interest or capital, Lacunza said a withdrawal would be "opportunistic in the short term but binding in the long run" While Friendly would require an increased tax effort, but would return to the international and voluntary credit market previously. In addition, he attributed responsibility for the considerable external debt process during the management of Cambiemos to the opposition, the provinces and the judiciary. "The level of debt is the result of a collective decision taken as part of the democratic process," he said.

Lacunza proposed a conference at the Palacio de Hacienda to point out that in September, the public accounts showed a primary deficit (before interest payments) of 25,368 million pesos, which would correspond to the goal agreed with the IMF. In nine months, a primary surplus of 22 892 million pesos is accumulated, although the interest on the debt makes the financial result unfavorable (see separate).

Prior to the centrality that earned the public debt incurred by the current government during the electoral debate, Lacunza decided to separate Macri from all responsibility and instead attributed it to the rest of the political actors.

"The change in the public debt is equivalent to the tax result. To reduce the debt, you have to reduce the deficit. You must choose one of two things. And this dilemma of choosing between reducing the deficit or reducing the debt is not solved by the executive in power. The result of this dilemma is given by the interaction of political forces within Parliament, because the finance law establishes a certain level of expenditure and income and that, often during the negotiation process, they generate more spending and lower taxes, which leads to higher debt level. Provinces and court decisions changing the distribution of funds also participate. In other words, the level of debt ultimately results from a collective and democratic decision, "said Minister Lacunza.