BUENOS AIRES, Aug 9 (AFP) - Argentina will honor its multi-billion dollar debts to the IMF to the end of the year despite an impasse in loan negotiations, Cabinet Chief Alberto Fernandez said Monday.
"We have some unresolved items pending with the IMF but Argentina is in a position to continue its repayments. We are in a better position than we were a year ago even if we are not in an optimal situation," Fernandez told Radio 10.
The Argentine government of President Nestor Kirchner has IMF repayments amounting to 2.25 billion dollars by the end of this year.
According to Fernandez, Argentina will pay back the IMF from central bank reserves, which stand at about some 18 billion dollars.
The IMF is now discussing whether to release a third payment to Argentina from a program, agreed in September of last year, which restructured 21 billion dollars in debt to multilateral lenders.
One condition of the IMF program is that Argentina engage in negotiations with holders of its defaulted bonds. Creditors have rejected Argentina's offer to pay just one-quarter of the face value.