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peppertree's JournalSeeking Washington's support, Argentina's Milei buys aging F-16s his bankrupt country can't use
Argentine Defense Minister Luis Petri signed an agreement this morning in Buenos Aires with his Danish counterpart, Troels Lund Poulsen, for the purchase of 24 aging F-16 aircraft for the Air Force.
With the agreement, the far-right Javier Milei administration seeks to reaffirm its "alignment" with the United States - at a time when draconian austerity measures at home have paralyzed federal public works, revenue sharing, and even federal aid to the country's burgeoning soup kitchens.
The reequipment of the country's sorely underequipped air force had been suspended since a $2 billion deal with right-wing President Mauricio Macri was scuttled by British pressure in 2017 - prompting the resignation of then-Argentine Ambassador to the U.S. Martín Lousteau.
Macri's center-left successor, Alberto Fernández, later entered into talks with China for the purchase of 15 Chengdu JF-17 combat aircraft - seen as a preferable alternative by many in the Argentine Air Force due not only to the considerable savings; but also to the fact the JF-17s would be new (rather than 1980s-era F-16s), and exempt from U.K. vetoes on British parts and equipment.
But the potential purchase of the JF-17s had been staunchly objected to by Washington - and CIA Director Williams Burns flew to Buenos Aires this week to congratulate Milei for, according to administration sources, "having nothing to do with China."
The deal is the largest between the U.S. and Argentina since a 1994 order of 36 A4M Skyhawk jet attack planes by the similarly "pro-Washington Consensus" Carlos Menem administration.
Britain's effective veto of its military parts or equipment to Argentina, however, rendered the Skyhawks largely useless - a fate many in Argentina's Air Force fear for the $338 million F-16s.
At: https://www-pagina12-com-ar.translate.goog/724479-el-gobierno-no-tiene-plata-para-comedores-pero-le-compra-avi?_x_tr_sl=es&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en-US&_x_tr_pto=wapp
Argentine Defense Minister Luis Petri and his Danish counterpart, Troels Lund Poulsen, sign an agreement this morning for the purchase of 24 aging F-16 aircraft for Argentina's depleted Air Force.
The far-right Javier Milei administration rushed the agreement - bypassing congressional approval - in a bid to secure Washington's support for his increasingly unpopular and draconian 4 month-old administration.
The charm offensive rested less on the purchase of the F-16s - rendered nearly useless by U.K. vetoes on any British-sourced parts or equipment - as by the cancellation of talks to buy Chinese-made JF-17 aircraft, which are less costly and are not subject to British restrictions.
A record devaluation, and deep cuts to social programs, public works and other domestic needs, have meanwhile pushed an estimated 6 million into poverty just as of January - to a record 57.4%.
Armed men assault Argentine human rights activist in 'political' attack
An activist with the human rights group H.I.J.O.S. was tied, beaten and sexually assaulted in a “political” attack at her home, the organization has reported.
Two men allegedly broke into the activist’s home in Buenos Aires and waited to attack her when she returned, holding her at gunpoint and threatening to kill her.
“We haven’t come to rob you, we’ve come to kill you,” they reportedly told her. “They’re paying us for this.”
“This attempt on her life is a political attack, motivated by her human rights and feminist activism. Nothing of value was taken, they only took folders with information about our group,” the organization wrote in a statement.
The organization added that the assailants painted “VLLC” on the wall, the acronym for far-right President Javier Milei’s libertarian slogan viva la libertad, carajo ("long live freedom, dammit" ).
Milei, Vice President Victoria Villarruel, Security Minister Patricia Bullrich, and Defense Minister Luis Petri have all downplayed and/or rationalized the crimes of Argentina’s last dictatorship (1976-83).
Petri yesterday met with relatives of some of those convicted, and lauded the atrocities outright.
At: https://buenosairesherald.com/human-rights/armed-men-assault-activist-in-political-attack-rights-group-reports
Members of the Argentine human rights group H.I.J.O.S. joins a demonstration commemorating the 40th anniversary of the fascist, 1976 coup in 2016.
An H.I.J.O.S. activist was brutally attacked in her home in Buenos Aires recently - an attack which comes on the heels on a mounting social media campaign on the part of the far-right Javier Milei administration to demonize opponents in general and activists in particular.
The attack comes day before the March 24th anniversary of the coup - which in Argentina is commemorated as the Day Memory, Truth, and Justice.
The group (Sons and Daughters for Identity and Justice Against Forgetfulness and Silence) has spearheaded efforts to locate and prosecute dictatorship-era torturers and other perpetrators of the country's 1970s-era Dirty War.
Over 1,100 have been convicted since former President Néstor Kirchner - widely hated by the Argentine right - lifted their immunity from prosecution in 2003.
As Argentina's Milei marks 100 days in office, economic "Mileise" pushes down approval
A report published by Argentine pollster Zuban Córdoba shows a collapse of economic expectations, an accelerated deterioration of personal and family finances - and of both job and personal approval for President Javier Milei just three months into his far-right presidency.
The study, “The Economy in the Milei Era,” was carried out between March 7 and 9, based on 1,500 polled nationwide, with a margin of error of 2.5%, with Computer Assisted Web Interviewing (CAWI) methodology.
Milei's job approval has plummeted to 42%, with a 57% disapproval according to the study.
This marks a record low figure this early in any administration since democracy returned in 1983: center-left President Alberto Fernández (2019-23) enjoyed an 80% approval three months in, and right-wing President Mauricio Macri (2015-19), 60% - about average for all Argentine presidents at the 90-100 day point.
Milei's "personal" approval is down to similar levels - another difference with his predecessors, who often enjoyed higher personal than job approval.
Confidence man
Some 55.4% now believe the country is going in the wrong direction, compared to 42.4% who think the opposite. The figure is a reversal from last December: then, 54.3% believed in the course set by the self-styled libertarian while only 43.5% disbelieved.
Consumer confidence, published monthly by the right-leaning Torcuato di Tella University, likewise plunged from 47.5 in November, to 36 in February.
71.6% say there now worse off since Milei took office, with only 5.4% saying they are better off - figures which underscore the effects of a 114% devaluation in December that has triggered a near-doubling in consumer prices and a jump in poverty rates from already-high 44.7% to 57.4% just as of January.
69% also say they no longer know what expenses to cut to make ends meet and 53% fear losing their job - a fear that was statistically minor under Fernández.
And perhaps most worrisome for the irascible Milei, 51.7% now blame his administration for the current crisis with 46% still blaming Fernández, 41% believing it to be a “worthwhile sacrifice,” and only 24% agreeing that “politicians are now paying the price of austerity” - undercutting three key administration talking points.
This is a dramatic reversal from December, when only 32% blamed the (then-new) Milei administration, and 49% blamed Fernández - with the country then evenly split (47% each) as to whether politicians or society at large was “now paying the price.”
At: https://www-pagina12-com-ar.translate.goog/721641-milei-desaprobado-sobre-todo-por-la-economia?_x_tr_sl=es&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=wapp
Left-wing demonstrators protest yesterday against deep cuts to social program under the far-right Javier Milei administration, as well as against sharply lower living standards generally since Milei was elected in November.
The latter crisis is gaining resonance even among Argentina's traditionally right-leaning middle class - with 71.6% saying they are now worse off, and that society - not politicians, as Milei often claims - are bearing the brunt of the current crisis.
Argentina downgraded to Selective Default by S&P on Milei debt swap
Argentina’s local debt was slapped with a downgrade to selective default by S&P Global Ratings Wednesday after the government pushed investors into exchanging bonds for new notes with later maturities.
The ratings company cut the local credit rating to SD from CCC-, citing what it called a distressed debt swap “tantamount to default” in a statement.
President Javier Milei’s government launched an exchange of around $65 billion of peso-denominated securities due in 2024 for new bonds maturing next year through 2028.
Creditors holding about 77% of the instruments agreed to the deal.
At: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-03-13/argentina-downgraded-to-selective-default-by-s-p-on-debt-swap?embedded-checkout=true
IMF Deputy Managing Director Gita Gopinath and Argentine Economy Minister Luis Caputo shake hands in Buenos Aires last month.
Far-right President Javier Milei made slashing Argentina's $27 billion budget deficit last year to "zero" a central campaign promise to both voters and the IMF - but has largely resorted to gimmicks such as budget sequester decrees (mainly at the expense of provinces) and deferring interest payments.
The latter move cost Argentina a downgrade to "Selective Default" by S&P yesterday.
Argentina's Milei likes tweet calling for vice president's hanging
Political wrangling in Argentina over far-right President Javier Milei's far-reaching deregulation "mega decree" took a troubling turn today after Milei liked a tweet by a supporter calling for the "hanging" of Vice President Victoria Villarruel.
The tweet, published earlier today, stated that "Villarruel went all in at the casino. She took took it upon herself to let them vote on the decree" - in reference to news of the failure of Villarruel's push to further defer debate in the Senate over Milei's Decree 70/2023, after 10 weeks of procedural delays on her part.
"It won't pass," the tweet concluded, "and she should be hanged in the Plaza" (the square facing the Casa Rosada presidential offices).
The tweet was posted by "TDM" - one of a small army of social media trolls known to regularly post inflammatory and often bigoted messages in favor of Milei and against his critics. The account and all its activity were taken down later today - though screenshots of the "hanging" post, and Milei's like, are widely available.
Argentina's constitution requires that presidential decrees be debated in congress within 10 days of their issuance - a deadline now exceeded by over two months.
The decree is likely to be rejected in the Senate - much as the "Omnibus bill" was rejected in the Lower House on February 6.
Consumer prices have jumped 72% since Milei took office three months ago and devalued the currency by half overnight - triggering a sharp fall in retail sales, a deep recession, and a wave of layoffs.
At: https://www-pagina12-com-ar.translate.goog/720733-la-furia-de-milei-con-villarruel-el-ataque-de-los-trolls-y-e?_x_tr_sl=es&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=wapp
Argentine President Javier Milei and Vice President Victoria Villarruel during Milei's address to Congress on its opening session (akin to a State of the Union address) on March 1st.
Milei's liking of a tweet today calling for her "hanging" has dramatized their increasingly fraught relationship - as well as the growing amounts of time he devotes to social media.
Besides being to the right of Milei on issues such as the role of the armed forces, Villarruel is said to be close to former President Mauricio Macri - who was instrumental is sealing an alliance between his right-wing coalition and Milei's far-right party, and who reportedly prefers she take over the reins from the increasingly erratic Milei.
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