Argentina far-right Javier Milei wins presidency, not to join BRICS
3 Min Read
Diana Mondino, the candidate for the Argentine Foreign Minister, relays to Sputnik after the elections that Argentina will not be joining BRICS.
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Javier Milei greets supporters after winning the presidential runoff election in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on Nov. 19, 2023. (AP)
Far-right candidate Javier Milei beat Economy Minister Sergio Massa in Sunday's presidential runoff elections with 56% compared to Massa’s 44%, with 95% of the votes counted.
The politician has vowed to dollarize the Argentinian economy and has been compared to former US President Donald Trump and former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro. He has also been a stark advocate of a friendly foreign policy with the US and "Israel".
Milei’s rockstar appearance is appealing to youth in Argentina. However, his social views are less appealing, as he supports gun rights and wants to permit the sale of organs.
The former television personality called to “exterminate the political caste”, which he accredits to the economic crisis in Argentina, and has proposed banning abortion, creating a market for human organs, and loosening gun regulations.
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Argentina's monetary sovereignty
Massa, on the other hand, as the former economy minister, did not succeed in resolving the country's worst economic crisis in two decades.
“Argentines have chosen another path,” Massa said, adding, “Obviously these are not the results we hoped for, and I have spoken to Javier Milei to congratulate him because he’s the president that the majority of Argentines have chosen for the next four years.”
The country's Foreign Minister Santiago Cafiero has criticized Milei's dollarization proposal, noting that Argentina should be attracting dollars through exports but not by risking the country's monetary sovereignty.
Milei is due to replace Alberto Fernandez in the Casa Rosada on December 10.
Backtracking from BRICS
Meanwhile, Diana Mondino, the candidate for Argentine Foreign Minister, relayed to Sputnik after the elections that Argentina will not be joining BRICS.
“I don’t know why there is such interest in BRICS,” Mondino added.
Mondino further added that joint collaborations with China and Brazil will stop, despite them being Argentina's main trading partners, as she stressed that the country intends to stay in the South American trade bloc Mercosur.
It is worth noting that Milei is against joining BRICS.
Earlier in August, Argentina, alongside Egypt, Iran, Ethiopia, UAE, and Saudi Arabia were invited to join BRICS.
Argentinian president Fernandez articulated at the time that Buenos Aires is grappling with an economic crisis with high inflation and weak foreign currency reserves, and was looking to join the bloc.
