Alongside his sister, the general secretary of the Presidency, Karina Milei, and his ministers, Milei took stock of his first of four years in office. In a long speech, which he read while turning the pages of paper, the president criticized Mercosur. He said the bloc was founded by “a group of bureaucrats”.
He once again said that Argentina lost out with the bloc that, in his view, is closed to foreign trade. “As I announced at the Mercosur summit, we will seek to reduce the Common External Tariff (TEC). And each country can negotiate with whoever it wants. Next year, we will seek a free trade agreement with the United States,” he said.
Argentina assumed the temporary presidency of Mercosur last Friday, during a summit meeting in Montevideo, Uruguay. The presidency is semi-annual and rotating. In his speech this Tuesday night, Milei announced that his ‘chainsaw’ (which symbolizes strong adjustment) will continue in action in 2025, despite it being an election year. In his own way, Milei is already asking for votes for next year’s legislative elections, when he intends to expand his base in the National Congress. Today, his party, A Liberdade Avança (LLA), is considered a small party, but it counted on the support of other parties to approve government projects this year. On the national network, Milei criticized the opposition and those who doubted that he would complete his first year in office. And he said he will reduce taxes by 90% and implement the use of foreign currencies for all day-to-day operations in the country.
This first year of Milei’s administration was marked by a drop in inflation, an increase in poverty rates and a strong contraction in the economy. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) predicts a 3.5% drop in GDP this year, with growth of 5% in 2025.