In Argentina, President Nestor Kirchner has announced his government will reject any involvement of the International Monetary Fund in Argentina’s debt payment. Kirchner made the comments during his state of the union address.

Argentinian President Nestor Kirchner: “In the Paris Club they tell us: 'You must have an agreement with the International (Monetary) Fund to be able to pay the debt.' We say to them: ’Sirs, we are sovereign. We want to pay the debt, but no way in hell are we going to make an agreement again with the IMF.”

The IMF helped push through a series of economic policies that many believe helped bring Argentina’s economy to collapse in 2001.