ARGENTINA: The Supreme Court Controversy & more – 27th Feb 2025

¡Buenos días from Greenway Parks! This is the Rorshok Argentina Update from the 27th of February twenty twenty-five. A quick summary of what's going down in Argentina.

We’re still not at the end of the $LIBRA cryptocurrency controversy we covered last week. On Tuesday the 25th, a Spanish lawmaker called Gerardo Pisarello filed a criminal complaint against president Javier Milei in Spain over this matter, adding to ongoing investigations in Argentina and the US.

Recall that last week Milei promoted the token before its value collapsed, leaving investors with massive losses, while developers allegedly withdrew 100 million dollars in what some call a pump-and-dump scheme. Pisarello accused Milei and his associates of fraud and market manipulation, urging Spanish and European prosecutors to investigate. He highlighted the role of Hayden Mark Davis, Milei’s advisor, who partly resides in Spain, and warned that those responsible pose a serious threat to financial security.

Another controversial move sparking sharp criticism involves the Supreme Court. On Tuesday the 25th, President Milei appointed Ariel Lijo and Manuel García-Mansilla to two vacant seats via decree while the Senate was in recess. The government justified the move by citing the need to restore the court’s full functionality, arguing that delays in the Senate left key positions unfilled.

Lijo, a longtime federal judge, has faced scrutiny for his slow case resolutions, while García-Mansilla, a lawyer and academic, is known for his opposition to abortion rights. Opposition leaders accused Milei of overstepping constitutional boundaries to secure political protection, demanding the Senate reject the appointments.

That wasn’t the only major development on Tuesday. Telecom purchased Telefónica’s operations in Argentina for 1.25 billion dollars, immediately triggering a government probe over potential monopolistic practices. Telecom is one of Argentina’s largest telecommunications companies that provides mobile, internet and TV services through its main brand: Personal Flow. It’s controlled by Grupo Clarín. On the other hand, Telefónica is a Spanish multinational that owns well-known brands like Movistar and O2.

The acquisition would give Telecom control over more than half of the country’s telecommunications market, raising concerns about reduced competition. Telecom defended the deal, emphasizing plans to expand fiber optic networks, 5G coverage, and digital services. The government tasked regulatory bodies ENACOM and the National Commission for Foreign Trade and Defense with reviewing the deal, worrying that a monopoly could undermine their efforts to curb inflation.

Shifting from communications to banking, a judge has blocked President Milei’s decree to convert Banco Nación into a limited company, ruling that only Congress has the authority to change its legal status. The decision came after bank employees challenged the move, which would have paved the way for private investment.

Milei’s administration defended the decree using a previous order allowing state-owned companies to be privatized, but the judge ruled that Banco Nación, as a self-governed entity, wasn’t included. He also pointed out that Congress had already rejected the bank’s privatization when debating Milei’s reform bill, suggesting the president overstepped his authority.

Another step toward privatization: The government has initiated the process of privatizing Corredores Viales, the state-run company responsible for highway maintenance. Under the new framework, private contractors will manage national highways and infrastructure work, funding their operations through toll fees.

The government argued that Corredores Viales is responsible for nearly 45% of the country’s road infrastructure but has accumulated significant debt and losses. The Agency for the Transformation of Public Companies will oversee the privatization process, managing the selection of private contractors and supervising the dissolution of the public company once the handover is complete.

Staying on business, President Milei traveled to Washington to speak at the Conservative Political Action Conference, where he announced Argentina’s intention to become the first country to adopt the White House’s new reciprocal trade policy. This policy seeks to counter unfair trade practices by ensuring the US receives equivalent treatment from its trading partners, including through tariffs or other countermeasures to balance trade relations.

Milei also emphasized his anti-state stance and aligned himself with the Trump administration, expressing a desire to pursue a free trade agreement with the US. Later, he met with President Trump, who praised Milei’s economic reforms.

As a result of President Milei’s ties to Trump, Argentina has shifted its stance on the Ukraine conflict. On Monday the 24th, President Javier Milei’s government abstained from supporting a United Nations resolution that condemned Russia’s actions in Ukraine, marking a departure from Argentina’s previous strong support for Kyiv. This shift came after Trump criticized Ukraine’s leadership and strengthened ties with Russia.

The abstention sparked backlash in Argentina, with opposition leaders calling it regrettable and shameful. Critics, including former officials, questioned Milei’s consistency, especially since he had previously condemned Russia’s actions.

In other news, a massive search operation is underway in Ballestero Sud, in the central Córdoba province, after Lian Gael Flores Soraire, a three-year-old boy, went missing on Saturday the 22nd. Lian’s parents last saw him before taking a nap around 3 p.m., and when they woke up at 5 p.m., he was gone.

Local police, firefighters, and search teams, including federal units, are scouring the area, which consists of fields and dirt roads. Despite using search dogs and drones, efforts have been slowed by adverse weather.

In Buenos Aires City, Mayor Jorge Macri announced that Guaraní would be taught in primary schools starting this year, following a meeting with Paraguayan President Santiago Peña. This move aims to strengthen ties with Paraguay, but it has sparked mixed reactions among residents, many of whom feel the focus should be on more widely spoken languages like English.

Macri also revealed plans to revamp the city’s education system, with updates to how subjects like Language, Mathematics, Art, and Science are taught. The changes include a new curriculum designed to improve reading, writing, problem-solving, and emotional skills, alongside investments in technology like 58,000 netbooks for schools.

As the peak tourism season winds down, international tourism to Argentina experienced a 20% decline compared to the previous year, with a total of 1.04 million visitors. The majority came from Brazil, Europe, and Chile, but the drop was largely due to a nearly 13% decrease in air arrivals.

Conversely, outbound travel by Argentinians surged, with departures rising by 73% to nearly 2.6 million.

If you’re wondering if Argentina is still a relatively cheap country and how much it costs to live in Buenos Aires in February twenty twenty-five, you may want to check out Buenos Aires Herald’s latest piece about it. The English-language outlet published an article that provides a detailed breakdown of expenses, including accommodation, food, entertainment, transportation, and long-term stays.

It notes that while prices remain competitive compared to some other major Latin American cities, tourists may experience sticker shock as many costs have become comparable to those in the US or Europe.

To read the article, follow the link in the show notes.

For those living in Argentina, and especially car owners, you need to know that the government is set to roll out big changes to the mandatory vehicle inspection system, known as VTV. The updated regulations will allow private workshops and dealerships to handle inspections alongside official centers, increasing competition and potentially lowering costs. Right now, prices vary between 53,000 pesos (which is about forty-five dollars at the parallel exchange rate) in Buenos Aires City and 63,000 (fifty-three dollars) in the province.

What’s more, new cars won’t need an inspection for the first five years, while vehicles between five and ten years old will go every two years. After ten years, inspections will be annual. The government is also pushing for a digital certification system, which could replace the current windshield sticker. Once the decree is official, each province can decide whether to adopt the new system or not.

And to close this edition, the Argentina Open has wrapped up, with Brazilian João Fonseca making history by defeating Argentina’s Francisco Cerúndolo in straight sets to become the youngest champion in the tournament’s history at just eighteen years old.

Meanwhile, Argentine Sebastián Báez claimed the twenty twenty-five Rio Open title, successfully defending his crown and becoming the first player to win the tournament twice.

Aaand that’s it for this week! Thank you for joining us!

In case you didn’t know, besides the Rorshok Argentina Update, we also do others! We’ve got many country updates from Africa, Asia, South America, and Europe. But we also have non-country updates, including the Arctic Update, about the area north of the Arctic Circle, the Multilateral the world’s major multilateral institutions, and the Ocean Update, about the 70% of the world covered in salt water,

If you want to check out the full list of updates, go to https://rorshok.com/updates/. The link is in the show notes.

¡Nos vemos la próxima semana!