Original article: ¿Contra quién se rearma Milei? : privatizaciones financiarán el fortalecimiento militar argentino Who is Javier Milei’s Government preparing to arm against? This question arises after the Argentine president signed a decree of necessity and urgency that, for the first time in decades, explicitly ties the sale of state assets to the rearming of the Armed Forces.
Under the title of Argentine Military Adaptation and Re-Equipping Plan (ARMA), the libertarian administration has established that resources derived from privatizations and the sale of national state properties will become the primary driver to restore operational capabilities, develop strategic infrastructure, and update military equipment. This measure, signed by the far-right president and his entire Cabinet, is presented as a response to a geopolitical and technological environment that the Executive considers to be of «growing complexity». The text stipulates that 10% of the income generated from the sale, concession, or use of national state properties will be allocated to the Ministry of Defense.
This percentage increases to 70% if the sold assets were previously under the jurisdiction of that ministry, currently led by Minister Carlos Presti. Additionally, another complementary source will come from the privatization of public companies under the controversial Bases Law—which reduces state intervention in the economy by eliminating regulations, privatizing state enterprises, and decentralizing public functions. According to the decree, 10% of the revenue from these operations will also be directed toward military re-equipment.
The digital outlet El Destape reported that these resources will not replace the National Defense Fund (FONDEF) but will complement it, and must be applied exclusively to programs for technological modernization, infrastructure projects, and enhancing the capabilities of the national defense system. To justify this measure, the libertarian leader cited a widespread deterioration of military equipment, the need to adapt to new threats—such as cyberattacks or asymmetric conflicts—and the chronic budget limitations that he claims have reduced the ability to invest in this area. To navigate these limitations, the decree instructs the Joint Staff of the Armed Forces to present, within 90 days, a list of urgent equipment and capability needs, which will then be evaluated by the Ministry of Defense for implementation.
Who is Milei Arming Against? The question of what specific adversary or threat justifies rearming with privatization funds remains on the table, especially since this measure will be implemented amidst warnings about maritime spaces in the southern zone. In this context, it is worth asking: What is Argentina aiming to achieve by reinforcing its military capacities in a scenario where diplomatic tensions persist over boundaries, southern sovereignty, and strategic projection towards Antarctica?
In mid-March, Foreign Affairs Latinoamérica published suspicions of a purported foreign policy operation by Javier Milei’s Government that may have compromised national sovereignty over the port of Ushuaia. Specifically, it allegedly offered U. S.
President Donald Trump the strategic southern enclave as part of a payment for securing admission into the Peace Board initiated by the republican magnate, a membership valued at one billion dollars. These suspicions were fueled by a concrete event that the libertarian administration never fully explained. On January 26, a Boeing C-40 Clipper from Joint Base Andrews (Maryland) landed in the southern capital, after stops in San Juan and Buenos Aires.
At that time, the U. S. embassy limited its comments to calling it «a bipartisan delegation from the Energy Commission,» a version reiterated by Casa Rosada without offering further details, raising alarms in Chile, considering that any potential cession of operational rights could jeopardize the 1959 Antarctic Treaty, which expressly prohibits «military bases, maneuvers, or weapons tests» in the area.
Later, in mid-April, statements from the head of Argentina’s Naval Hydrography Service, Hernán Montero, sparked controversy by doubting Chilean sovereignty over the Strait of Magellan. The Argentine rear admiral asserted in a podcast that «the mouth of the Strait of Magellan» belongs to his country. «The mouth that connects Cabo Vírgenes with Punta Dúngenes and from there eastward is Argentine,» he claimed.
As a result of these declarations, members of the Frente Amplio (FA), Ericka Ñanco and Jaime Bassa demanded the Foreign Ministry defend unequivocally Chile’s sovereignty over this maritime passage that administratively belongs to the Magallanes Region and Chilean Antarctica. They noted that Montero disregarded existing international treaties, such as the 1881 Treaty and the 1984 Treaty of Peace and Friendship, which established maritime and land borders between the two countries.