New York judge Thomas Griesa has once more ruled against Argentina in the nation’s battle with the vulture funds, determining that the jurisdiction of the bonds that entered the debt swaps of 2005 and 2010 cannot be changed.
The Manhattan magistrate informed that the plan announced by President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner on August 26, to reopen the exchange and change the payment jurisdiction of existing bonds, is «an attempt to evade orders.»
The government has already sent the law mandating the reopening of debtswaps to Congress, which was passed without major opposition, although the project finally did not include fixing Buenos Aires as the site of payment.
In today’s declaration, Griesa effectively prohibited any modification to jurisdictions, acting on a new request from the bondholders who have refused debt swaps.
Finance Secretary Adrián Cosentino, in a press statement released after the verdict was made public, dismissed the importance of the new ruling, stating that «it does not add anything new to the case.»
«It adds no new element to the case or to the judicial process, which is in another moment of discussion and negotiation. Besides, this order has no relevance to the 7 percent of bonds still to be restructured,» he added.
buenosairesherald.com