The unprecedented trade and military deal would bypass Mercosur, reports say
Argentine President Javier Milei intends to announce a new pact with the US while visiting President-elect Donald Trump at his Florida residence, according to media in Buenos Aires.
The Libertarian politician has made major cuts to Argentina’s government in the year he’s been president. Milei arrived at Mar-a-Lago on Thursday for an investor event scheduled to run till Saturday.
In a speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) investor summit, Milei is expected to call for the formation of a “league of conservative nations,” according to Argentine media reports. He reportedly wants a pact with the US committing to “freedom of trade and military cooperation.”
Milei hopes that Trump’s victory in the US presidential election last week will make it easier for Argentina to negotiate with the International Monetary Fund over $44 billion in debt, reports said.
Argentina is also reportedly interested in forging closer ties between the US Central Intelligence Agency and its State Intelligence Secretariat.
Earlier this week, Milei praised Trump for “copying our model” for slashing government bureaucracy, revealing that his deregulation and state transformation minister, Federico Sturzenegger, had been in touch with tech billionaire Elon Musk “to see how to deregulate the US economy.”
Trump recently named Musk to a Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), an extra-governmental initiative tasked with cutbacks and reforms in Washington, with a mandate through July 4, 2026. Milei and Musk, who has also spent the week since the US election at Trump's estate, are reportedly set to meet in Florida.
Milei’s trade pact with the US would be a body blow for Mercosur, the Southern Common Market organization which includes Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay. The bloc is currently attempting to negotiate a trade deal with the EU.
Following his trip to Mar-a-Lago, Milei is scheduled to host French President Emmanuel Macron on Saturday in Buenos Aires, attend the G20 Leaders’ Summit in Brazil on Monday, and fly back to Argentina to host Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni next Wednesday.
On Thursday, after speaking with Trump, Milei recalled his delegation from the UN climate conference (COP29) in Azerbaijan.
