Trump: "Chinese Military in Argentina? I'd be furious!"
US President Donald Trump warned Argentine President Javier Milei that any Chinese military activity in Argentina "will not be well received" in Washington. In a White House meeting, Trump said trade relations were fine, "but keep out of the military with China."
US financial support for Argentina was also in the spotlight. Trump mentioned the need for Milei to perform well in the October 26 midterm elections in order to receive a $20 billion currency swap line, even though US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had previously said the package was "final." Trump's remarks triggered a drop in Argentine government bond prices on Tuesday afternoon.
He then stated that US aid was not contingent on Milei's government's decision on the $18 billion swap deal with China's central bank. He emphasized that US concerns were more about ports, military bases, and observation facilities China was building in Argentina—an implicit reference to China's space observation station in Patagonia. The Chinese embassy hit back at US criticism, accusing Washington of "bullying" Latin America with a "Cold War mindset."
The Argentine government responded through Security Minister Patricia Bullrich, who stated that no specific discussion of the space station was discussed during the meeting. She said inspections of the facility were ongoing. For context, Argentina granted land use rights for the station in 2012 for 50 years, and space cooperation with China was renewed by the previous government. (asd)
Source: Newsmaker.id
