After a bilateral meeting held last August, in which Ignacio Paco Taibo II, director of the Mexican Culture Fund, expressed the intention of making an important donation of books to the Ministry of Culture of the Nation, its realization was announced through Gastón Levin, director of the Argentine subsidiary.

This donation sponsors, also, the implementation of cooperation and articulation actions within the framework of the Cultural and Educational Cooperation Agreement between the United Mexican States and the Argentine Republic.

The Fondo de Cultura Económica is an emblematic publishing institution of the State of Mexico that, since 75 years, edita, produce, markets and promotes works of national culture, Ibero-American and universal, through own and third-party distribution networks. It is a symbol of the integration of America and maintains an important presence in other countries of the region through its eight subsidiaries, between them, the one from Argentina. Is a pride, so, for this Ministry to receive said donation from one of the most important institutions of Hispanic American culture.

The books will be delivered to the National Commission of Popular Libraries (CONABIP) to deepen the rights of access to culture and to strengthen policies to promote and disseminate reading.

The event was held in person at the Kirchner Cultural Center with Tristán Bauer, Minister of Culture of the Nation; Lucrecia Cardoso, Secretary of Cultural Development; Gaston levin, Director of the Economic Fund for Culture of Argentina; Ariela Peretti, National Director of Federal Integration and International Cooperation; Armando López Trujillo, Charge d'Affaires a.i. of the Embassy of Mexico in Argentina; and Diego de la Vega Wood, in charge of International Cooperation and Cultural Affairs of the Embassy of Mexico in Argentina. They were virtually present, Carlos Tomada, Argentine ambassador to Mexico; Paco Ignacio Taibo II, general director of the Economic Culture Fund; Marco Barrera Bassols, international coordinator of the Fondo de Cultura Económica; Ana Laura Rojo Jiménez, Deputy Director of International Cultural Cooperation of the Secretariat of Culture of Mexico; and María del Carmen Bianchi, The President of the CONABIP.

“I want to highlight the brotherhood of our peoples, from Mexico and Argentina. I have deep gratitude to the people and government of Mexico for so many years of relationship, but above all for having given shelter in that dark night of the civic-military dictatorship to our compatriots and their families. We have a bond that unites us by our history and by our culture. We celebrate the 75 years of the Economic Culture Fund. Paco Ignacio Taibo surprised us a while ago when he told us about this book donation that we are already making today. I want this to be the first meeting of many, the first link of many others, the first of many activities that we carry out in all fields of culture and in all artistic disciplines but, particularly with Paco, we have a beautiful task: that the Mexican authors are known in Argentina and that the Argentine authors are known in Mexico. The commitment of this Ministry is to work in this line and that Argentina and Mexico function as poles of radiation of our written culture. With this hope and with sincere and deep emotion and gratitude we receive this donation of books and we are going to do a task together. Let's build the future in brotherhood. Many thanks", said the Minister of Culture, Tristan Bauer, when opening the act.

By your side, Paco Ignacio Taibo II, Director of the Fund for Economic Culture of Mexico, affirmed that "this is the first donation of an‘ gift operation ’. The logical idea is that nothing separates us, we are always at home, a sense of living together in terms of maximum closeness and minimum distance. We have to think of Latin America as a whole. If Europe is able to create an internal trade structure, open, we are going to have to do it from Patagonia and travel throughout Latin America. And culture is the best of bridges. It is a pleasure to have made this donation so quickly, and we are preparing the second. We are going for a great Argentine-Mexican meeting of storytellers, let's put together co-editions, and always count on us. The distance is much smaller than it seems ".

The brand new Argentine ambassador in Mexico, Carlos Tomada, excitedly pointed out that “this was possible because there is an Economic Culture Fund linked to Argentina in all possible ways. This is not just a donation, It is a tremendous symbol of what Argentina's relationship with Mexico means and what we are capable of doing between both countries with two doers like Paco Taibo and Tristán Bauer.. I toast to shared values ​​and to this possibility of putting ourselves into action and why there are many more. Thank you very much".

The Secretary of Cultural Development of the Ministry, Lucrecia Cardoso, affirmed that this donation means "one more step in the ratification of our common history with Mexico, a story of solidarity. It is one more step in the commitment to diversity and the democratization of access to that diversity. It is one more step in enforcing the right of access to reading, through the National Commission of Popular Libraries ".