The day after President Trump antagonized world leaders throughout the globe along with his most sweeping set of tariffs but, he was scheduled to fly to Florida and probably see the one chief he has known as his “favourite president.”
That chief, President Javier Milei of Argentina, had flown in a single day to obtain an award on Thursday at a right-wing gala at Mar-a-Lago. Mr. Trump was scheduled to even be there late Thursday — Mr. Milei stated Mr. Trump would obtain an award, too — and Mr. Milei stated he hoped the 2 would meet.
It was Mr. Milei’s tenth journey to the USA in 15 months as president, and practically each time, he has met Mr. Trump or Elon Musk.
Mr. Trump has posited that he’s reshuffling U.S. international coverage strictly round what is nice for the USA.
So what might be puzzling about his elevation of Argentina to the entrance row of America’s allies — Mr. Milei and Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni of Italy had been the one world leaders onstage at Mr. Trump’s inauguration — is that the chronically distressed South American nation is just not significantly necessary as an financial or geopolitical accomplice.
As a substitute, via Mr. Milei, Argentina has supplied Mr. Trump one thing else he seems to crave: adoration.
“I really like him as a result of he loves Trump,” Mr. Trump stated of Mr. Milei in a speech final 12 months. “Anyone that loves me, I like them.”
Mr. Milei has repeatedly and publicly lauded Mr. Trump. He has posted doctored photographs of them embracing. He has gifted Mr. Musk a customized chain noticed. And when Mr. Milei turned the primary world chief to go to Mr. Trump after the U.S. election, he danced round Mar-a-Lago and informed the group, “At this time the world is a a lot better place.”
Carlos Kikuchi, a conservative speak radio host in Argentina who helped run Mr. Milei’s marketing campaign, stated that, to the Argentine chief, “having such a clean relationship with Trump and Musk is like touching heaven.”
Mr. Milei has translated his devotion into coverage. Weeks after Mr. Trump stated he would pull the USA from the World Well being Group, Mr. Milei did the identical with Argentina.
After Mr. Trump exited the Paris Local weather Settlement, Mr. Milei’s authorities stated it was trying into doing so, too. Mr. Milei fired his first international minister as a result of she voted on the United Nations — as Argentina at all times had — in opposition to the U.S. embargo on Cuba.
And after Mr. Trump started criticizing Ukraine — a nation Mr. Milei had steadfastly supported for years — Argentina abstained from a U.N. vote to sentence Russia for its invasion.
Mr. Milei has additionally change into one of many loudest voices within the tradition wars, happening a worldwide talking tour of types to assault leftists, feminists and transgender individuals, and to laud Mr. Trump because the champion who will, in Mr. Milei’s telling, save the West from “woke ideology.”
“Each time we meet with President Trump, he at all times says, ‘I like this man,’” Gerardo Werthein, Argentina’s new international minister, stated this week. “He at all times says, ‘He’s MAGA like me: Make Argentina Nice Once more.’”
Mr. Trump has praised Mr. Milei’s work in stabilizing Argentina’s economic system. Certainly, Mr. Milei has succeeded in reducing inflation, growing development and balancing the finances.
But, for the USA, Argentina stays a clumsy match as a strategic accomplice. The nation of 46 million is geographically separated from a lot of the world and has been caught for many years in cycles of financial disaster.
The 2 international locations additionally promote lots of the identical issues: corn, wheat, soybeans, meat, oil. Commerce between them fell 8.6 p.c to $16.3 billion final 12 months. Argentina ranks thirty sixth globally in shopping for American exports, in response to the Observatory of Financial Complexity, a analysis group.
On Wednesday, Argentina, was nonetheless hit with the ten p.c minimal levy utilized to just about each nation.
However Mr. Milei, who describes himself as a radical libertarian, discovered a shiny aspect. “Mates will likely be pals,” he wrote on social media, linking to the Queen track after which sharing posts arguing that Argentina had gained a bonus over international locations hit with larger tariffs.
Arguably the largest potential prize for the USA is Argentina’s massive stockpiles of strategic minerals, together with lithium, a obligatory part of renewable batteries. American and Chinese language firms are main gamers in Argentina’s increasing lithium mines, and Tesla — run by Mr. Musk — buys Argentine lithium for its electric-car batteries.
U.S. diplomats have urged the Milei administration to maneuver away from China, together with by proscribing China’s entry to lithium and rare-earth components, in response to a former senior Milei administration official and senior U.S. diplomat who spoke anonymously to debate non-public talks.
But Argentina’s commerce with China has elevated beneath Mr. Milei, and China stays a bigger buying and selling accomplice than the USA, shopping for soybeans, silver and beef.
Up to now, then, it could be Mr. Milei who has gained probably the most from the brand new friendship.
Argentina is looking for a $20 billion mortgage from the Worldwide Financial Fund and, because the fund’s largest stakeholder, Washington holds the important thing vote. Argentine officers have stated they count on to have Mr. Trump’s assist.
Lucía Cholakian Herrera contributed reporting.
