President Javier Milei made an explosive debut on the international political scene on Wednesday, using a keynote speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos to cheer capitalism, slam socialism and warn Western leaders.
Launching an extraordinary broadside against “socialism” and a strident defence of free-market economics, Argentina’s outspoken leader told the world’s political and business elite that they must realise the error of their ways.
"I am here today to tell you that the West is in danger," warned the 53-year-old libertarian in a speech that could’ve come straight from last year’s campaign trail.
“It is in danger because those who are supposed to defend the values of the West have been co-opted by a vision of the world that inexorably leads to socialism and, consequently, to poverty.”
Accusing Western leaders of having “abandoned their model of freedom,” the president argued that governments had been taken over by “variants of collectivism,” linking these supposed beliefs to overreaching state intervention, feminism and the push for social justice.
“It should never be forgotten that socialism is, always and everywhere, an impoverishing phenomenon that has failed in all countries where it’s been tried out," Milei claimed. “It’s been a failure economically, socially, culturally, and it also murdered over a hundred million human beings.”
The La Libertad Avanza leader concluded his speech by praising business leaders as "heroes" who should not be afraid of the "political caste" and "the parasites that live off the state” – some of his favoured talking points.
“Do not surrender to a political class that only wants to stay in power and will take its privileges. You are social benefactors, you are heroes,” said Milei. “Let no-one tell you that your ambition is immoral. If you make money, it is because you offer a better product at a better price… Do not surrender to the advance of the state.”
"You are the true protagonists in this story. You should know that from now on, you can count on Argentina as an unconditional ally," Milei added.
"The state is not the solution. The state is the problem," he declared, ending his speech with his traditional battle cry: “Viva la libertad, carajo!” ("Long live freedom, damn it!").
Slams state
Milei had opened his speech by presenting long-term macroeconomic data that he said showed how capitalism had led millions out of poverty. Riffing on one of his favourite themes, Milei called on governments to strip state intervention from markets.”
“States don’t need to directly control the means of production and control every aspect of the lives of individuals,” he declared.
“With tools – such as money-printing money, debt, subsidies, controlling interest rates, price controls, and regulations to correct the so-called ‘market failures,’ they can control the lives and fates of millions of individuals,” the president argued, citing Argentina’s economic crisis as proof of his theory.
“Far from being the cause of our problems, free-trade capitalism, as an economic system, is the only instrument we have to end hunger, poverty, and extreme poverty across our planet,” declared the president.
Touting free-market capitalism as the only solution against poverty and destitution, Milei took aim at "radical feminism," abortion and "social justice," which he said had sparked social conflicts that opened the door to socialism.
“Libertarianism already provides for equality of the sexes. The cornerstone of our creed says that all humans are created equal, that we all have the same unalienable rights granted by the creator, including life, freedom and ownership.
“All that this radical feminism agenda has led to is greater state intervention to hinder the economic process, giving a job to bureaucrats, who have not contributed anything to society,” said Milei.
“Unfortunately these harmful ideas have taken a strong hold in our society. Neo-Marxists have managed to co-opt the common sense of the Western world, and they have achieved this by appropriating the media, culture, universities, and also, international organisations.”
In-demand
Milei, 53, was one of the keynote speakers at the high-profile Davos summit, which brings together more than 100 representatives of governments, international organisations, businesspeople and leaders from various fields.
When introducing the president, WEF founder Klaus Schwab said that while some describe the new president's methods as "radical," he has introduced "a new spirit to Argentina, making Argentina much more related to free enterprise, to entrepreneurial activities."
Milei's speech drew praise from right-wing figures on social media platform X, whose owner Elon Musk wrote "true" in response to a video of the speech.
The trip to Switzerland is his first as head of state and his appearance at the event was awaited with curiosity and intrigue. His time was in high demand – the president said earlier this week that his office had received more than 60 requests for meetings.
Some in the audience gathered to take shake his hand and take pictures as he left the congress hall.
Prior to the speech, Milei held an "excellent" meeting with British Foreign Secretary David Cameron.
Among other topics, they discussed the Malvinas (Falkland) Islands, the archipelago in the South Atlantic that was the scene of a 74-day war in 1982 that left 649 Argentines and 255 British dead.
Argentina’s president is due to meet Kristalina Georgieva, managing director of the International Monetary Fund, later on Wednesday.
Last week, IMF staff visited Argentina for talks over the nation’s US$44.5-billion credit programme and approved the disbursement of US$4.7 billion in funds to the crisis-stricken nation. The deal is subject to approval from the multilateral lender’s executive board.
Georgieva said at a Bloomberg event in Davos on Tuesday that the Argentine government was making progress as it was moving "very aggressively" to address the country's "shortcomings.”
As well as facetime with Georgieva, Milei’s team have also agreed a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron, according to government sources. Details have yet to be finalised or publicised.
Milei, who is due to return to Argentina early Friday morning, has been accompanied to Europe by Karina Milei, his sister and secretary general to the Presidency, Cabinet Chief Nicolás Posse; Foreign Minister Diana Mondino; and Economy Minister Luis Caputo.
Gerardo Werthein, Argentina’s proposed ambassador to the United States (nomination pending), also attended.
– TIMES/AFP/NA
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