American Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said this Wednesday (15) that the Donald Trump administration is seeking collaboration from the private sector and sovereign wealth funds to double financial aid to Argentina.
“We are working on a US$20 billion credit line that would complement our swap line, with private banks and sovereign wealth funds that, I believe, would be more focused on the debt market,” Bessent told reporters, according to information from the Associated Press.
The secretary called this second package “a private sector solution” and said that “many banks are interested in it and many sovereign wealth funds have expressed interest.”
Last week, Bessent had announced that the United States directly purchased Argentine pesos and finalized a US$20 billion currency swap structure with the Central Bank of Argentina to help President Javier Milei’s country.
This swap agreement had been agreed upon during the Argentine president’s visit to participate in the UN General Assembly, in New York, at the end of September.
On Tuesday (14), Milei went to the United States again and was received at the White House by Trump, who suggested that aid could be interrupted if Milei suffered electoral defeats.
“We’re not going to let someone take office and waste the taxpayers’ money in this country. I’m not going to let that happen,” Trump said. “If he [Milei] lose, we will not be generous with Argentina.”
Trump seemed to make reference to the 2027 presidential election, when Milei will seek re-election, but hours later he expressed support for the Argentine president in the mid-term legislative elections, which will be held on the 26th and in which the libertarian party, A Liberdade Avança (LLA, in its Spanish acronym), will seek to reverse the disadvantage in the number of seats in the Argentine Congress.
“I hope the Argentine people understand the great work he is doing and support his work during the upcoming midterm elections so that we can continue to help him realize Argentina’s incredible potential. Javier Milei has my full and complete support — he will not let you down,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
