“If the International Monetary Fund continues with this conduct to give money to the government so that the raffle trying to control the price of the dollar, the Argentines will have to review our commitment to the fund. We cannot continue sustaining this model at the expense of future generations. VLLC,” was posting in X, which recently went viral on social networks, attributed to Javier Milei when he developed his presidential campaign in July 2023.
At that time, the economist rave against the economic management of the portfolio of Sergio Massa In the presidency of Alberto Fernández. At that point, when Milei competed as a candidate in 2023, his speech on the International Monetary Fund was rejection and repeated disqualification. He described the IMF programs as insufficient and the agency officials as “bureaucrats” who do not attack the underlying problem, and said that their own economic plan would be harder and would demand adjustments greater than those claimed by the entity.
That public position – recognized by interviews and coverage of the campaign – placed it as the candidate who promised to cut with the old logic of the financing agreements and criticize the external dependence that, according to him, had perpetuated national economic vulnerability. In the campaign of LLA linked loans to the government of Alberto Fernández With the bad political praxis: he described refinancing as arrangements that did not corrected incentives.
According to the libertarian economist, the IMF “does not fix” structural problems and warned that the assists ended in clientele subsidies or in guaranteeing governments that do not cut expense. The national media reported how these messages were central to their electoral offer, with appeals to the electorate about the need for a “shock therapy” in public accounts.
However, the first of the great achievements of economic management was the agreement with the agency commanded by Kristalina Gueorguieva To obtain a loan from USD 20,000 million under the extended funding modality (EFF). The amount was established in early 2025, with the intention of providing fresh financing to support the stabilization plan, reinforce international reserves and facilitate the normalization of exchange markets. That treatment includes a structure with deadlines for a term of Ten yearswith a grace period of four and a half years for the repayment of capital. Part of the funds will be used to cancel Treasury debt that is in the hands of the Central Bank, as well as obligations in force with the IMF itself.
As for the disbursement, it was agreed that USD 15,000 million Of those 20,000 million, they are of free availability in 2025, with more urgent initial partial payments. A significant consequence of the agreement has been the official commitment of the government to deeply eliminate or relax the “exchange rate” and move towards a more flexible exchange regime, which was a central point of negotiations with the IMF. However, market intervention to control the price of the currency was a constant in the economic management of the national government.
Despite that critical diagnosis, at present and being president, Milei traveled to the United States to meet with the Treasury Secretary, Scott Besent, in search of financial and political support that complements the efforts before the IMF. Journalistic sources stressed that the visit seeks to make guarantees – from statements that support exchange stability to possible swap lines or asset purchases – that help calm the market and to reinforce reserves at a time of exchange tension. The tour, more than a symbolic gesture, was presented by the ruling as a practical management to ensure liquidity while negotiating technical terms with other creditors.
On the other hand, far from the pre -election rhetoric of two years ago, the current relationship of the LLA leader with the IMF is, for now, that of a formal program in follow -up but with political friction. The Executive negotiates goals and disbursements while facing internal criticisms about the way in which progress was made. At the same time, the agreement with the IMF remains a central piece to recompose reserves and give signals of fiscal sustainability; Reviews and disbursements condition Argentina’s ability to show macroeconomic results that reduce the need for additional external support.
The contrast between Milei’s criticisms of IMF loans in 2023 and its current discourse, reveals the tension between an electoral ideological diagnosis and the inevitable government praxis, which requires external financial moorings to control the exchange rate and avoid overflows in the short term. That is why the meeting with Scott Besent, looks for new concrete tools that allow the Casa Rosada to travel the adjustment and reforms without a messy exit of the exchange market, while keeping the technical negotiations open with the background.
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