Presidency of Javier Milei
Argentine presidency since 2023 From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Argentine presidency since 2023 From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The presidency of Javier Milei began on 10 December 2023, when Javier Milei was sworn into office to a four-year term as the president of Argentina. Milei took office alongside vice president Victoria Villarruel following the La Libertad Avanza victory in the 2023 Argentine general election, with 55.65% of the vote in the second round against former economy minister Sergio Massa's 44.35%. Milei was elected with the highest total vote ever in Argentina and the highest percentage since 1973, amid the still ongoing 2018 Argentine monetary crisis.
 | You can help expand this article with text translated from the corresponding article in Spanish. (December 2023) Click [show] for important translation instructions.
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| Presidency of Javier Milei 10 December 2023 – present | |
Javier Milei | |
| Party | Libertarian Party La Libertad Avanza Republican Proposal Radical Civic Union |
| Election | 2023 |
| Seat | Casa Rosada Quinta de Olivos |
 Standard of the president | |
On 11 April 2022, Milei announced his candidacy in an interview with Clarín.[1] Milei chose Victoria Villarruel, a National Deputy for the conservative Democratic Party, as his running mate. Villarruel, a veteran's advocate and signer of the Madrid Charter, has been accused of historical revisionism in regards to the Dirty War in the form of Argentine state terrorism denial.[2][3]
Over the election, Milei steadily rose in the polls for his right-wing libertarian and right-wing populist views, as inflation increased above 100%.[4] During the August 2023 PASO primary, Milei emerged as the leading candidate with 29.86% of the vote.[5] Milei then advanced to the first round where he achieved second place on 22 October against Sergio Massa, the Minister of Economy who represented the incumbent Union for the Homeland coalition, with both advancing to a second round on 19 November.[6]
For the runoff, Milei was endorsed by former president Mauricio Macri and third-place candidate Patricia Bullrich, both members of the Juntos por el Cambio coalition.[7][8] Milei remained technically tied in polls with Massa but emerged the victor on 19 November by 10 points in a rejection of the establishment Peronists.[9] His victory was likened to that of Donald Trump in the United States and Jair Bolsonaro's in Brazil.[10][11]
Milei was inaugurated on 10 December 2023. He delivered a speech to the Argentine nation,[12][13] warning of an economic shock, which has been described as shock therapy in economic terms, to be used as a means to fix Argentina's economic woes,[14][15][16] with inflation rising to 200 percent.[17] Following the inauguration, Milei saw his popularity increase in public opinion. After the first governmental and economic reforms taken by the president and his ministers, 53% of the Argentine people had a very good or good image of the new head of state according to a popularity poll made by Aresco on 15 December.[18]
Milei's cabinet took office on 10 December 2023. After the remaining officials from Alberto Fernández's presidency resigned, Milei began his nominations for those responsible for the existing portfolios. His cabinet mostly included ministers from La Libertad Avanza and Juntos por el Cambio.[19][20][21]
Upon taking office as president, Milei signed various decrees related to his cabinet members and ministries. He successively named Nicolás Posse as Cabinet Chief, Guillermo Francos as Minister of the Interior, Diana Mondino as Minister of Foreign Affairs, International Trade and Worship, Luis Petri as Minister of Defense, Luis Caputo as Minister of the Economy, Patricia Bullrich as Minister of Security and Mario Russo as Minister of Health. On 10 December, with his 8th decree (the first as president of Argentina), he modified the law and reduced the existing 19 government ministries to nine.[22] President Milei then nominated Mariano Cúneo Libarona as Minister of Justice. As planned in his presidential campaign, he created the ministries of Infrastructure and Human Capital and appointed Guillermo Ferraro and Sandra Pettovello to lead them.[23] In order to name his sister Karina Milei as General Secretariat of the Presidency, he removed the impediment that former president Mauricio Macri signed that would have dictated to designate relatives in the state.[23]
| Portfolio | Secretary | Party | Coalition | Start | End | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| General Secretariat | Karina Milei | LP | LLA | 10 December 2023 | — | ||
| Legal and Technical Secretariat | Javier Herrera Bravo | PRO | JxC | 10 December 2023 | — | ||
| Communications and Press Secretariat | Belén Stettler | Independent | 10 December 2023 | — | |||
| Interior | Lisandro Catalán | Independent | 27 May 2024 | — | |||
 | This article needs to be updated. The reason given is: Needs events post-January. (March 2024) |
On 21 December 2023, Milei announced a large decree that become known in the media as "Megadecreto", a plan to modify a wide variety of economic regulations regarding the Argentinian economy. In a statement saying that he aims to lay "the foundations for the reconstruction of the Argentine economy and restore freedom and autonomy to individuals, removing the State from their shoulders",[24] more than 300 regulations were set aside, including significant rent and labor market regulations.[25] The decree is subject to approval by Congress, which was called for an extraordinary session to be held in the first months of 2024.[26]
The Milei government said it would not renew contracts for the more than 5000 public sector employees who were hired in 2023, while contracts for other government employees hired prior to 2023 will be reviewed. "The 2023 cutoff is apparently meant to target the practice of outgoing presidents padding the payrolls in their final year."[27] Annual inflation in Argentina surpassed 211% in 2023.[28] Since his inauguration monthly inflation has come down from 25% in December to 8.8% in April, more than expected.[29][30][31]
On 10 January 2024, the IMF agreed to restart payouts to the Argentine treasury. Trade unions in Argentina have opposed Milei's policies, and the CGT called for a general strike on 24 January 2024. Milei has aimed to build up the central bank's foreign-exchange reserves by raising import and export taxes.[32]
In an interview published on 31 March 2024, Milei emphasized his continued plans to dollarize the economy, but saying that the plans are delayed to after the 2025 Argentine legislative election.[33]
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On 10 December, economist and economics academic Diana Mondino was formally appointed as Minister of Foreign Affairs, International Trade and Worship.[34]
Milei's government decided to suspend diplomatic relations with Cuba, Nicaragua, and Venezuela. After his inauguration, Milei ordered that Argentina would not send ambassadors to any of those three countries, which Milei has previously labelled as dictatorships.[35]
In January 2024, Argentina offered military assistance to Ecuador in its conflict with organized crime. On 13 January, Ecuadorian president Daniel Noboa accepted Argentina's (and the US's) military aid.[36]
On 25 January 2024, Colombia summoned its ambassador in Argentina to protest recent comments by Javier Milei, where Milei called Colombian president Gustavo Petro a "murderous communist who is sinking Colombia."[37] The Colombian ambassador labelled Milei as a "hypocrite" and condemned his comments.[38]
Milei's Foreign Minister, Diana Mondino, confirmed that Argentina rejected its invitation to join the BRICS group of nations, and that the country had instead chosen to sign its membership request to OECD.[39]
On 29 December 2023, Milei ratified Argentina's withdrawal from entry in a letter addressed to BRICS leaders.[40]
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On 12 December 2023, Argentina changed its position before the United Nations in regard to the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. Argentina, which had voted in favor of a ceasefire in the General Assembly Resolution ES-10/21, switched to abstaining in the Resolution ES-10/22. Analysts said the move showed a clearer support for Israel from Milei.[41]
On 14 January 2024, on the occasion of the hundredth day of war between Israel and Hamas, Milei expressed solidarity with the government and people of Israel, further adding that Argentina "endorses Israel's right to legitimate defense."[42]
On 5 February 2024, he commenced his inaugural state visit to Israel as president. There, Milei met with President of Israel Isaac Herzog and Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu, to whom he confirmed that embassy of Argentina's in Israel will move from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.[43]
Milei met with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Buenos Aires on 10 December 2023. On 16 December, Milei's government announced through the Air Force, that it would donate two Russian-made Mil Mi-17 military helicopters to Ukraine.[44]
On 22 June 2024, Milei met with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. Milei and Scholz voiced support for the European Union–Mercosur free trade agreement.[45]
On 24 June 2024, Milei visited Czechia and was greeted by Czech President Petr Pavel and Prime Minister Petr Fiala.[46]
In June 2024, 55 % of the Argentinians had a neutral or positive opinion about the Milei government.[47]
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