As part of Argentina Week, the cabinet led a decisive institutional day in Paris, where they secured the support of the French administration and began business rounds with international investors
The president of Argentina, Javier Milei, held a bilateral meeting this Thursday with his counterpart from France, Emmanuel Macron, at the historic Palais Élysée. The Argentine leader arrived at the government headquarters accompanied by the Secretary General of the Presidency, Karina Milei.
Upon arrival, he was greeted by a solemn military fanfare and immediately welcomed with a warm hug from Emmanuel Macron as he descended from the vehicle. In turn, Karina Milei extended her formal greeting to the French first lady, Brigitte Marie-Claude Macron.
After a brief exchange of seconds, the four personalities ascended the main stairs of the building to pose formally before the cameras of the international press. The official visit is part of Argentina Week, a strategic summit organized by the Argentine Embassy in that country with the firm purpose of attracting European investments.
The institutional agenda included a short private meeting between the heads of State, followed by a broader working meeting with members of their cabinets and a select group of invited businessmen. The solid official delegation from the Argentine Government was composed of the Chief of Cabinet, Diego Santilli; the Minister of Economy, Luis Caputo; the Chancellor, Pablo Quirno; the Minister of Justice, Juan Bautista Mahiques; the Minister of Health, Mario Lugones; the Secretary of Media, Fabián Fernández; and the Ambassador, Ian Sielecki.
The presidents, Javier Milei and Emmanuel Macron
The international response was swift: the French newspaper Le Figaro noted that “After the chainsaw crisis, Milei now has to restart production and investment”, while the media outlet France 24 highlighted the president's search for European capital and questioned the possibility of future crises in the country.
Prior to the summit at the Palais Élysée, Javier Milei was the main speaker at the opening day of Argentina Week, delivering a measured, read, and short speech at the headquarters of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), in front of an audience filled with investors and bankers. In that international context, the head of State made a strong defense of the structural reform program his administration is carrying out.
Milei and Macron
In his speech, Javier Milei revealed that the Argentine State has a financial “bazooka” of USD 75 billion designed to crush “destabilizing and coup attempts” during the electoral calendar.
He also projected that the Argentine economy will accumulate a growth of over 16 points by the end of his term, contrasting sharply with the average expansion of less than 6% expected for OECD member nations, which represents between three and four times the historical average of Argentina. If he revalidates his leadership in the 2027 elections, the president stated that the year 2028 will become “the best economic year in history”, reaffirming the same projection previously made to financiers on Wall Street in the city of New York.
During his intervention, Javier Milei was blunt in repudiating the policies of previous administrations and categorically asserted that Kirchnerism“will not win a national election again”. In that vein, he reaffirmed the ideological orientation of his administration, stating: “Today Argentina wants to be the most pro-market country in the West and is already one of the fastest-growing”, setting the goal of transforming the nation into “the one with the greatest economic freedom in the world”.
In making a comparative assessment regarding the three previous governments, he argued that his is the only one that shows a positive financial result and a reduction in total debt, while simultaneously generating the largest increase in pensions, the largest accumulation of international reserves, and the largest rise in exports. Before the gathered financial leaders, he firmly stated: “The comparison, gentlemen, is devastating”.
The president, Javier Milei
Regarding the strategic sectors of the future, Javier Milei emphasized that Argentina has unparalleled conditions to lead the field of artificial intelligence due to its resources of energy, minerals, low-temperature lands, and specialized human capital.
In the internal political arena, he recalled the resounding victory of his party in the October legislative elections, where he outperformed the second political force by 17 points without altering the pre-electoral economic course. He indicated that if this performance were to be replicated in 2027, the libertarian force would gain control of the Chamber of Deputies and approach a parliamentary majority in the Senate, ensuring that under no circumstances will he apply electoral stimuli that undermine fiscal balance.
The leader associated the electoral victory with the prompt achievement of investment grade, a factor that will lower interest rates, boost growth, and accelerate the reduction of poverty. Finally, after reaffirming that the administration is “well armed against destabilizing and coup attempts”, he directly called on international private capital: “Come in now. After we achieve investment grade, it may already be too late”.
