Argentine President Mauricio Macri has promised that an inquiry into the disappearance of a navy submarine will “know the truth” of what happened.

Mr Macri urged Argentines not to look for people to blame until all the facts were known.

He said the search for the ARA San Juan and its 44 crew would continue.

Hopes have faded since the navy said an event “consistent with an explosion” was detected near the sub’s last-known location.

Announcing the official inquiry at navy headquarters in Buenos Aires, Mr Macri said the 34-year-old submarine had recently undergone a refit and was “in perfect condition”.

“We should not venture into looking for people to blame,” he told a news conference.

“This will require a serious, deep investigation that reveals certainties about why we are witnessing what happened. My commitment is with the truth.”

Earlier, navy spokesman Capt Enrique Baldi said there was still no trace of the submarine, which vanished nine days ago.

More than 12 countries are involved in the search.

Mr Baldi said search teams had access to “the best technology available” via the US navy.

He added: “We have the best naval, air and sensor resources available in the area, all focused on searching for the submarine. We are still looking and no country is saying at the moment when they will stop. Logically it’s time-limited but no-one is speaking about that at the moment.”