News of argentina

Pope Francis waves from a window of the Gemelli hospital before being discharged following a five weeks hospitalisation for pneumonia, in Rome on March 23, 2025.

Pope Francis returns home from hospital, thanks faithful

Today 10:41 Pope Francis returns to the Vatican after being discharged from the hospital where he spent more than five weeks receiving treatment.

WASHINGTON SANCTION

US bans CFK, De Vido from entry over 'involvement in significant corruption'

Yesterday 14:06 US State Department, under orders of Marco Rubio, issues statement confirming entry ban for former president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, former federal planning minister Julio de Vido and their immediate family members.

by Cecilia Degl'Innocenti

WASHINGTON'S BAN ON CFK

United States bars Cristina Fernández de Kirchner from entry due to graft case

Yesterday 09:37 US Secretary of State Marco Rubio made the decision to ban Cristina Fernández de Kirchner and her immediate family, as well as former public works minister Julio De Vido, “for significant corruption,” according to a statement.

Argentina's midfielder Thiago Almada celebrates after scoring during the 2026 FIFA World Cup South American qualifiers football match between Uruguay and Argentina at the Centenario stadium in Montevideo, on March 21, 2025.

International football

Qualification all but sure as Scaloneta gets revenge in Montevideo

Yesterday 09:32 This version of La Scaloneta continues to get the result when it matters most, taking revenge for the Celeste's stunning victory in the Bombonera almost 18 months ago.

by La Scaloneta continues to

Chilean presidential candidate Evelyn Matthei.

POLITICS IN CHILE

Chile presidential candidate Evelyn Matthei lauds Argentina budget cuts

Yesterday 09:13 “In Argentina, they’ve cut spending with a speed and determination that’s incredible,” says Chile presidential candidate Evelyn Matthei.

Argentina's players celebrate after winning the 2026 FIFA World Cup South American qualifiers football match between Uruguay and Argentina at the Centenario stadium in Montevideo, on March 21, 2025.

WORLD CUP QUALIFYING

Argentina on brink after Almada strike sinks Uruguay

Yesterday 08:47 Win means Argentina can become first team from region to book a place at next year's World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico with a victory over arch-rivals Brazil in Buenos Aires on Tuesday.

BEYOND THE HEADLINES

'Cepo' in review

Yesterday 07:53 It might well be argued that the ‘cepo,’ the seemingly endless set of currency and capital controls, has been a bane of Argentina’s existence.

by Michael Soltys

As I see it

The old order is fighting back

Yesterday 07:45 Milei has managed to apply a much-needed corrective to a political order that, until he took over, seemed to have been programmed to destroy both itself and the country.

by James Neilson

ANALYSING ARGENTINA

Autumn is coming for Javier Milei

Yesterday 07:41 Last week, we discussed how an electoral agreement with the governor of Chaco signalled a possible pattern. This week, Chaco Governor Leandro Zdero received a 120-billion-peso transfer from the federal government. Just don’t tell the IMF.

by Marcelo J. García

POLITICS – ANALYSIS

Political hegemony turning to pathetic circus

Yesterday 07:14 Market jitters have pushed the government into a defensive posture, in which Economy Minister Luis ‘Toto’ Caputo appears to have involuntarily flamed the fans of devaluation.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Editorial

Forever Autumn?

Yesterday 07:11 There is already too much polarisation in politics at large – instead of extremes clashing, there is a need to meet in the middle for a serious debate about a complex issue.

the week in review

Stories that caught our eye: March 14 to 21

21-03-2025 17:00 A selection of the stories that caught our eye over the last seven days in Argentina.

IMF DEBT TALKS

IMF to consider US$20-billion Argentina deal in informal meeting

21-03-2025 15:44 IMF intends to discuss a new loan for Argentina during an informal meeting between its staff and executive board next week in Washington.

Fans remember footballing great Diego Maradona.

death of diego maradona

Maradona trial: Star's room was ‘very dirty,’ says doctor

21-03-2025 11:47 Details of star's death emerges during trial; Doctor who saw Maradona after death says medical team was attempting to resuscitate a body that had long been dead.

‘Buenos Aires, The Biography of a City’ by James Gardner, St. Martin’s Press, New York, 2015, 245 pages.

BOOK REVIEW

Will we always have Paris?

21-03-2025 11:11 ‘Buenos Aires, The Biography of a City’ by James Gardner, St. Martin’s Press, New York, 2015, 245 pages.

by Michael Soltys

ypf nationalisation case

Burford met with silence from Milei over US$16-billion YPF judgment

21-03-2025 10:33 Argentina faces a US$16-billion court judgment over its nationalisation of oil company YPF. But the firm that won the case says President Javier Milei won't talk to them.

Argentina's Embassy in Caracas, Venezuela.

EMBASSY SCANDAL IN CARACAS

The year-long stand-off between five prisoners in a mansion and Maduro's regime

21-03-2025 10:20 Members of Venezuela’s opposition are trapped in Argentina's Embassy in Caracas, living on rainwater and sardines, as government forces stand watch.

Buenos Aires City lawmaker Yamil Santoro (Unidos Republicanos) launched the 'Unión Porteña Libertaria' – a new political space with a familiar identity.

POLITICS

No more JxC, PRO dispute – Electoral alliances in City confirmed

20-03-2025 23:48 City alliance deadline closes, Juntos por el Cambio no more, PRO goes it alone, also without Rodríguez Larreta; Leandro Santoro heads Peronists; Controversy over ‘Unión Porteña Libertaria’ slate.

People take part in a demonstration outside Congress during a national strike against the government of Javier Milei in Buenos Aires, on January 24, 2024.

LABOUR & POLITICS

CGT labour federation calls general strike on April 10

20-03-2025 20:10 The CGT umbrella union grouping on Thursday confirmed that it will call a general strike – the third of President Javier Milei’s time in office – on April 10.

IMF DEBT PROGRAMME

IMF deal will be agreed by mid-April, says Milei

20-03-2025 18:27 Lower house backs presidential decree authorising new deal with International Monetary Fund.

Images from clashes between pensioners, football fans and sympathisers and the security forces during a protest near Congress on March 12, 2025.

HUMAN RIGHTS

Rights body criticises Milei over policing of protests

20-03-2025 16:53 Inter-American Commission of Human Rights calls on President Javier Milei’s government to guarantee freedom of expression and association as it voices concerns; Weekly pensioners’ protest passes off without major incident.

DEBT & MARKETS

Argentina waiting on yields to fall below 10% before debt market return

20-03-2025 12:26 Argentina is waiting for yields on its sovereign bonds to edge below 10% before exploring return to international capital markets, says government official.

'CRYPTOGATE' SCANDAL

Déjà vu? Another libertarian politician promotes ‘$LIBRA’ crypto token

20-03-2025 01:03 La Libertad Avanza lawmaker José Luis Espert says his account on the X social network was “hacked”; Post promoting ‘$LIBRA V2’ token made, just weeks after President Milei pushed same scam cryptocurrency.

President Javier Milei and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Foreign relations & diplomacy

President Milei postpones scheduled trip to Israel

19-03-2025 23:31 Tensions in Israel and Argentina lead to suspension of President Javier Milei’s trip; Decision made as conflict rages in Middle East and protests pick up at home.

View of a seat of a lawmaker from the ruling La Libertad Avanza ruling party during the debate on a decree by Argentina's President Javier Milei to obtain congressional backing for the signing of new debt with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) at the Chamber of Deputies in Buenos Aires on March 19, 2025.

IMF DEBT PROGRAMME

Milei wins lower house approval to agree new IMF loan

19-03-2025 17:52 Milei granted free hand in negotiations with International Monetary Fund over a new programme as lower house backs decree authorising talks.

Congress & Politics

Congress upholds Milei’s decree to back new IMF-Argentina deal

19-03-2025 17:44 Lower house lawmakers vote in favour of President Javier Milei’s emergency executive decree backing a new deal with the International Monetary Fund.

A delivery worker waits for an order outside a restaurant in Buenos Aires.

ECONOMIC INDICATORS

Economy extended expansion as new IMF accord nears

19-03-2025 17:27 Gross domestic product expanded 1.4% in the three months through December, compared with the previous quarter.

Passengers wait at a bus stop in Buenos Aires.

ANALYSIS: SHOCK THERAPY

Milei’s inflation miracle distorted by obsolete items in index

19-03-2025 17:12 Calls are getting louder for President Javier Milei’s government to redo the make-up of the consumer price index for the first time in two decades.

The pensioners were accompanied by football fans and left-wing supporters in protesting Milei's austerity measures.

POLITICS

Unions, movements ready to confront Milei government

19-03-2025 16:23 Brutal police crackdown at pension protest in Buenos Aires has united labour and social organisations, who are increasingly willing to show their discontent with the government.

Presidential official Elchin Amirbayov, centre, discusses trade with Argentina and peace with Armenia at a press briefing hosted by the Azerbaijan Embassy in March 2025.

DIPLOMACY

'Ball is in Armenia’s court' – Azerbaijani official on peace deal

19-03-2025 15:58 Elchin Amirbayov, Azerbaijan’s presidential representative for special assignments, says Baku is ready to seal a peace deal with Armenia to end decades-long conflict between two Caucasus neighbours.

by Melissa Canales

The government issues a warning to potentially violent demonstrators via public transport terminals.

PENSION PROTEST

Milei government issues public transport threat to demonstators

19-03-2025 11:19 Hours before weekly pension protest, message broadcast at stations across Buenos Aires metropolitan area warns that police “will repress any attempt against the Republic.”

Ana María Maradona, sister of Diego Maradona, arrives at a San Isidro court ahead of the trial for the death of her brother in San Isidro, Buenos Aires province, Argentina on March 11, 2025.

death of diego maradona

No 'medical items' around Maradona deathbed, policeman tells court

18-03-2025 22:13 Lucas Farías, an officer in the Buenos Aires Province Police Force, says he saw no "medical items" in the room where Diego Maradona received post-operative care.

Buenos Aires City Mayor Horacio Rodríguez Larreta.

POLITICS

Rodríguez Larreta confirms midterms run after PRO expulsion talk

18-03-2025 21:58 Former Buenos Aires City mayor confirms run in May 18 City midterms; He will likely do so under a new banner – a reaction to reported move by PRO members to expel him.

by James Grainger

Football fans take part in a protest of pensioners against the government of President Javier Milei in Buenos Aires on March 12, 2025.

PENSION PROTEST

Political football: In defence of Argentina's forgotten pensioners

18-03-2025 17:54 The football fans who marched Wednesday in Buenos Aires with pensioners were accused of being "destabilisers" by the Argentine government, but they have managed to unite social discontent into an unexpected opposition without leadership.

'CRYPTOGATE' SCANDAL

A month on from ‘$LIBRA,’ Milei siblings at centre of judicial tug-of-war

18-03-2025 17:00 Investigation into alleged corruption, influence-trafficking and public ethics rules now the focus of a jurisdictional tussle.

by Alfredo Izaguirre

HUMAN RIGHTS

Lawyer opposed to gender policies gets top human rights post

18-03-2025 16:34 Úrsula Basset, specialist in family law who has backed President Milei’s “cultural battle” against “wokeism,” named as new human rights director for Argentina’s Foreign Ministry.

Jack Chambers, Ireland’s Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Services, Reform and Digitalisation, gives a speech to mark St Patrick's Day.

COMMUNITY

Visiting minister hails Argentina’s Irish community on St. Patrick’s Day visit

18-03-2025 10:51 Jack Chambers, Ireland’s Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Services, Reform and Digitalisation and deputy leader of the ruling Fianna Fáil party, visits Argentina.

by Michael Soltys

ART & CULTURE

MALBA presents new Guillermo Kuitca exhibition

17-03-2025 17:42 'Kuitca 86' – New Guillermo Kuitca exhibition at MALBA revisits 1980s from a contemporary perspective, delving into the artist's work from the era.

by Rosario Bernasconi

International football

Will Lionel Messi's last dance be the World Cup 2026?

17-03-2025 09:32 Argentina eyes 2026 World Cup qualification, but will Lionel Messi be leading the side out on the pitch?

Labour unrest

Labour leaders plan general strike against Milei government

17-03-2025 09:10 CGT, Argentina's biggest umbrella union grouping, to call general strike for Tuesday, April 8; Details to be defined at the meeting this Thursday.

People hold up an image of Pope Francis during a vigil to pray for his health in Buenos Aires on March 7, 2025.

CATHOLIC CHURCH

Hospitalised Pope Francis says he is 'facing period of trial'

16-03-2025 09:26 Latest update from Vatican tampers speculation that the Pope's progress could signal an imminent release from hospital.

Shoppers browse products in a supermarket in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

ECONOMY – ANALYSIS

Argentina disinflation stalled despite strength of the peso

15-03-2025 10:52 Economists surveyed by Argentina’s Central Bank expect year-on-year inflation to plunge to 23% this year.

OPINION & ANALYSIS

Is Donald Trump good for Argentina?

15-03-2025 07:40 Trump’s new transactional and short-term economic order overlaps with a new gangster-style and hyper-materialistic political order.

by Jorge Fontevecchia

Chaco Province Governor Leandro Zdero and President Javier Milei.

POLITICS

Chaco and Milei’s electoral strategy for October

15-03-2025 07:36 Chaco shows that Milei is willing to seal alliances with the local political establishment — a.k.a. “the caste” — as it best suits them. And the Casa Rosada has leverage in this negotiation with the governors: cash.

by Marcelo J. García

POLITICS – ANALYSIS

Violence and institutional informality

15-03-2025 07:29 There are serious questions as to what happened on the streets outside Congress, but it clearly helped to distract the attention away from what was going on inside Congress and in the troubled port city of Bahía Blanca.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

While conspiracy theories are wildly fashionable in today’s world, accidents can also happen.

BEYOND THE HEADLINES

The Ides of March

15-03-2025 07:21 While conspiracy theories are wildly fashionable in today’s world, accidents can also happen.

by Michael Soltys

Ireland’s Ambassador to Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay, Gerard McCoy.

INTERVIEW / IRISH AMBASSADOR

Irish eyes are on the future, says Dublin’s man in Buenos Aires

15-03-2025 07:16 Ireland’s Ambassador to Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay, Gerard McCoy, marks St. Patrick’s Day with a review of diplomatic relations, Argentina’s Irish community and bilateral trade.

by Michael Soltys

State responds to Bahía Blanca flood damage.

EDITORIAL

Bahía Blanca as a wake-up call

15-03-2025 07:16 The devastation in Bahía Blanca should serve to sweep away any illusion that state responsibilities can be abdicated in the name of the laws of the market.

A 'train of solidarity' prepares to leave for storm-hit Bahía Blanca.

THE WEEK IN REIVEW

Stories that caught our eye: March 7 to 14

14-03-2025 17:07 A selection of the stories that caught our eye over the last seven days in Argentina.

Handout photo released by Argentina's Presidency press office showing Argentine President Javier Milei (2-R) posing with Security Minister Patricia Bullrich (2-L) the President spokesman Manuel Adorni (L) and ruling party legislator Jose Luis Espert at the "Expoagro" agricultural exhibition in San Nicolas de los Arroyos, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina, on March 14, 2025.

FALLOUT FROM PENSION PROTEST

Milei promises jail for ‘sons of bitches’ who caused violence in protest

14-03-2025 16:43 President Javier Milei promises to jail the "sons of bitches" who provoke street riots after Wednesday’s protest by pensioners, supported by football fans, turned violent amid repression from security foces.

The offices of the former Agencia Federal de Inteligencia (AFI), now renamed the Secretaría de Inteligencia de Estado (SIDE).

POLITICS & ECONOMY

Milei boosts budget of SIDE intelligence services by 7.3 billion pesos

14-03-2025 09:14 More funds for discretionary “reserved spending” for intelligence services; Increase in intelligence funding comes just days after President promised funds for storm-hit Bahía Blanca.

Scandal in the lower house Chamber of Deputies between deputies Oscar Zago and Lisandro Almirón.

POLITICS & CONGRESS

Scandal as La Libertad Avanza deputies come to blows in Congress

14-03-2025 00:01 Fistfight between ruling party deputies Oscar Zago and Lisandro Almirón after the latter accused the former of treason by granting quorum brought the session to an abrupt halt.

Security Minister Patricia Bullrich gives a press conference at the headquarters of the National Security Ministry in Buenos Aires.

POLITICS & SECURITY

Bullrich blames photographer’s injuries on ‘those who generate violence’

13-03-2025 23:52 National Security Minister Patricia Bullrich rejects criticism of approach to policing of pensioners’ protest and vows violent acts will be met by “police repression.”

Residential buildings outside the Vaca Muerta shale patch in Añelo, Neuquén Province, Argentina.

ENERGY & GAS

Petronas is evaluating exit from Argentina shale oil venture

13-03-2025 23:39 Petronas has begun a process that may result in a sale of its 50 percent stake in La Amarga Chica, a venture with state-run YPF in the oil production heartland of Vaca Muerta.

A model of the house where late Argentine football legend Diego Maradona died is seen arriving to the trial for his death at court in San Isidro, Buenos Aires Province, on March 11, 2025.

Death of diego maradona

Court dismisses two defence lawyers from trial into Maradona's death

13-03-2025 23:32 San Isidro court trying seven health professionals for the death of Diego Maradona removes two lawyers of one of the defendants from the case over potential conflict of interest.

Argentine photojournalist Pablo Grillo receives medical treatment by paramedics after being injured during a protest of pensioners supported by football fans against the government of President Javier Milei in Buenos Aires on March 12, 2025.

VIOLENT PROTEST

Journalist in critical condition after violent anti-Milei protest

13-03-2025 14:48 Police have released 114 of the 124 individuals arrested at Wednesday's pensioners protest outside Congress; Severely injured photojournalist Pablo Grillo recovers from a "life-saving" surgery after being shot by a projectile in the head.

Pope Francis greeting the crowd at a celebration marking the end of the Jubilee of Mercy in 2016.

Catholic Church

Hospitalised Pope marks 12 years in job with future uncertain

13-03-2025 14:02 Argentine-born pontiff has previously refused to make any concessions to his age or increasingly fragile health, but experts say his recovery could take weeks given his age and recurring health issues.

CLASHES WITH SECURITY FORCES

More than 120 detained, 20 injured as pensions protest turns violent

13-03-2025 01:54 Protesting pensioners joined by football supporters for anti-austerity demonstration; Security forces clash with hooligans; 124 detained and at least 20 injured in one of the most violent demonstrations against Milei’s austerity measures.

by Zella Milfred

FOOTBALL & POLITICS

Football fans put rivalries aside to stand up for pensioners

13-03-2025 00:39 As this week’s protest against President Javier Milei's government proves, supporters are willing to put aside their differences to fight a perceived injustice.

by Dan Edwards

A police officer uses pepper spray during a protest of pensioners supported by football fans against the government of President Javier Milei in Buenos Aires on March 12.

POLITICS & ECONOMY

Milei faces fresh protest from football club fans over austerity

13-03-2025 00:25 Weekly protest against President Javier Milei’s austerity against pensioners takes aggressive turn.

People choose donated clothes in Bahía Blanca, 600 km south of Buenos Aires on March 10, 2025.

BAHÍA BLANCA DEVASTATION

Milei pledges 200 billion pesos for Bahía Blanca after criticism

13-03-2025 00:20 President insulted during surprise visit to Bahía Blanca, deluge-stricken city devastated by last Friday’s storm; Milei announces US$184 million in funding, but local authorities say reconstruction could cost up to US$400 million.

A woman walks past a poster that reads in Spanish: 'Justice for D10s,' outside Diego Armando Maradona Stadium, home of the Argentinos Juniors football club in the La Paternal neighbourhood in Buenos Aires on March 10, 2025.

death of diego maradona

Residents in ‘Barrio de Dios’ want justice for Maradona's death

12-03-2025 22:40 In La Paternal, the neighbourhood where Diego Maradona took his first professional steps as a footballer, residents want justice for their fallen idol.

A kiosk worker uses his mobile phone during a power outage in Buenos Aires on March 5, 2025.

ECONOMIC INDICATORS

Inflation in Buenos Aires City slowed to 2.1% in February

12-03-2025 16:26 Consumer prices slowed by one point last month from January; Inflation in capital in first two months of year totals 5.3%.

President Javier Milei and presidential chief-of-staff Karina Milei, joined by Security Minister Patricia Bullrich, visit Bahía Blanca.

TRAGEDY IN BAHÍA BLANCA

Five days on, Milei travels to storm-hit Bahía Blanca

12-03-2025 15:21 President insulted during surprise visit to Bahía Blanca, city devastated by last Friday’s storm; Reconstruction could cost up to US$400 million, says local authorities.

Diners at a restaurant in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

ANALYSIS: SHOCK THERAPY

Argentines ditch dining out as Milei’s policies strengthen peso

12-03-2025 13:58 President’s self-titled “shock therapy” of economic policies are making the country’s currency so expensive it’s doubled dinner tabs at restaurants that were booming not so long ago.

Information is being sought on a woman who entered the country with more than 15 suitcases.

‘ROUTINE PROCEDURE’?

Questions asked of Milei over private jet’s arrival

12-03-2025 13:54 National government responds to journalistic report alleging order was given that private jet on which CPAC-linked US citizen travelled to Buenos Aires should not be inspected.

A fan holds a banner that reads in Spanish 'Justice for D10s' as he waits outside the San Isidro court during the trial for the death of late Argentine football legend Diego Maradona in Buenos Aires province, Argentina on March 11, 2025.

MARADONA TRIAL

Maradona medics on trial for 'horror theatre' of his death

11-03-2025 17:19 Four years after Diego Maradona's death, supporters chanted outside the trial of seven health professionals Tuesday to determine their responsibilities in what the prosecutor called the "horror theatre" of the legendary football player's final days.

An image of Diego Maradona on his deathbed is shown in court.

Death of Diego Maradona

'This is how Maradona died' – prosecutor shows shocking photo at trial

11-03-2025 15:22 Shocking image of Diego Maradona on his deathbed shown to court in San Isidro as trial into legendary footballer's death gets underway.

IMF DEBT PROGRAMME

Milei signs executive decree to back Argentina’s IMF programme

11-03-2025 14:18 President signs emergency decree to mandate a new deal between Argentina and the International Monetary Fund.

A man sleeps outside Constitución train station in Buenos Aires on March 10, 2025.

ECONOMIC INDICATORS

UCA observatory says poverty rate reached 41.6% last year

11-03-2025 13:39 New report from respected poverty watchdog, which measures figure on a "multidimensional" basis rather than purely cash, warns of challenges facing Argentina.

by Agustina Bordigoni