The Country It Should Be; Interview: Argentine President Nestor Kirchner has sky-high popularity ratings--and a raft of intractable problems on his plate.(Interview)(Cover Story)

Byline: Joseph Contreras

A noticeably leaner Nestor Kirchner granted a rare interview last month to NEWSWEEK's Joseph Contreras in Buenos Aires after he was hospitalized for six days for treatment of stomach bleeding. Excerpts:

CONTRERAS: Some opinion polls have registered a drop in your approval ratings for the first time since you took office. Is the political honeymoon over?

KIRCHNER: There never was a honeymoon. How could there have been a honeymoon when we had to take over the government within a month in a country that had exploded with so many unsatisfied demands? This isn't the most important thing for us. The important thing is to govern well.

Rising crime is a major concern for millions of Argentines. Could your political opponents use the issue against you?

Crime is a very difficult issue, which we are addressing with a strategic plan. The impoverishment of society generates a certain kind of crime, but there is also crime that arises from corruption in government institutions. We need to combat corruption and get rid of [crooked] police officials.

Argentina's private creditors have thus far rejected your proposal to pay 25 percent on the face value of $88 billion in government-issued bonds in their possession. Will you have to raise that figure to reach an agreement with those creditors?