Milei in Davos: “The West is in danger” from socialism

The Argentine president, Javier Mileisaid this Wednesday before the world elite gathered at the Davos Forum that “The West is in danger”, by arguing that values ​​are “co-opted with a worldview that inexorably leads to socialism”.

In his international debut as Argentine president, Milei presented his libertarian ideas against the so-called “political caste” What does he want “maintain your privileges”.

He also said that the “Radical feminism contributed nothing to society“, since it became the “State intervention to hinder the economic process and give work to bureaucrats“, and charged against the “abortion tragedy”.

Milei He was expected with curiosity and intrigue in Davos after launching by decree a series of ultraliberal measures in an Argentina hit by inflation, after taking office a little over a month ago.

In his speech, he added that social justice is “intrinsically unfair” because “The State is financed through taxes and taxes are collected coercively“, and ended with a message to those present: “Do not let yourselves be intimidated by the political caste or the parasites who live off the State. You are social benefactors, heroes, creators of the period of prosperity that we have never experienced”.

Before his intervention, he said:excellent” meeting with the British Foreign Secretary, David Cameron, with whom he addressed the issue of the Malvinas Islands, an archipelago in the South Atlantic that was the scene of a 74-day war in 1982 and which left 649 Argentines and 255 British dead.

“We talk about deepening commercial ties and we set the Malvinas on the agenda“said the Argentine president.

In 2013, in a referendum in the territory of just 2,000 inhabitants, 99.8% of voters voted to remain under British control. For Great Britain it is a settled matter, but Argentina has claimed sovereignty of the islands since 1833.

Meeting with Georgieva

Your opinions on some issues could clash with those defended in this forum. He denies, for example, that human activity is responsible for climate change.

The ultra-liberal and far-right economist had said before leaving that he had received more than 60 requests to meet with him in Davos. “I have no way of giving a physical response to such a demand.”, he assured.

However, he did schedule a meeting with the director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Kristalina Georgieva.

Argentina owes $44 billion to the IMF, which has welcomed Milei’s decision to eliminate price controls on some goods.

The purpose of this meeting is “continue speaking and making it very clear the conviction we have in this change of course that the new government has marked”, he noted from the plane.

Georgieva said Tuesday at a Bloomberg event in Davos that the Argentine government is making progress, moving “very aggressively” to address the “deficiencies” from the country.

Protests and general strike

Meanwhile, in Argentina, social movements protest almost daily against the measures imposed by the Milei government, in the face of a general strike called for next Wednesday by the General Confederation of Labor (CGT), the largest union center in the country, in in the midst of a tense environment due to skyrocketing prices.

December inflation reached 25.5% for an annual total of 211% in 2023

In his little more than a month in office after taking office on December 10, Milei suspended public works, did not renew state labor contracts, reduced ministries by half, devalued the peso by more than 50%, and freed fuel prices. , eliminated price controls, repealed the law that regulated rents and freed imports.