ATLANTA - Wendy??s/Arby??s International Inc. announced an agreement with Desarrollos Gastronomicos S.A. (DEGASA) to develop 50 Wendy??s restaurants in Argentina over the next 10 years, with the first location to open this year in Buenos Aires.

DEGASA operates and franchises Havanna Café ?" a quick-service coffee chain with more than 180 outlets in Argentina. The chain, which is the largest coffee retailer in Argentina, has recently expanded to nine additional countries in Latin America and Europe, with 68 outlets.

"Argentina is the latest example of the meaningful progress that we are making in the acceleration of our international expansion efforts," said Wendy??s/Arby??s Group President and CEP Roland Smith.

"This agreement is a substantial step forward in DEGASA?s strategy of creating one of the leading foodservice operators in Latin America. We are enthusiastic about the opportunity to bring Wendy??s to Argentina," said DEGASA spokesperson Guillermo Stanley.

In addition to Argentina, since June 2009, Wendy??s/Arby??s Group subsidiaries have reached long-term development agreements with franchisees for the Middle East and North Africa, Singapore, Turkey, Russia and the Eastern Caribbean. The company is aggressively pursuing potential opportunities in Japan, China, Brazil and other international markets.