Argentinians hold a banner that reads "The debt is with the people, not with the IMF," a recurrent slogan in protests in Argentina, referring to the country's external debt and the IMF's neoliberal austerity. File photo.
Former president of Argentina Cristina Fernández de Kirchner criticized the economic policy of the current Milei administration this Wednesday amid rising inflation and social deterioration.
In a post on social media, Fernández wrote: “Come down to earth, brother. Things here are really bad after the devaluation and your deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). As always, inflation has skyrocketed, price hikes are not stopping, and people are worse off by the day.”
Ay Milei!.. Disculpame que te escupa el asado en la previa de Semana Santa…
¿Pero ME QUERÉS DECIR QUE FESTEJABAS VOS Y EL TOTO CAPUTO sacándose fotos y saltando como chicos en cumpleaños?
PORQUE SI ES POR EL PRÉSTAMO DEL FONDO, junto al del Banco Mundial y el BID, te quiero…
— Cristina Kirchner (@CFKArgentina) April 16, 2025
The ex-president recalled that past administrations, such as Fernando de la Rúa’s, also received multimillion-dollar loans from the IMF, World Bank, and Inter American Development Bank (IDB) yet failed to avert economic crises.
“They gave it the flashy marketing name ‘The Shield,'” wrote Fernández. “How creative these ‘gorilla’ governments are, always inventing names to disguise their scams and hide the failures of their economic policies.”
While Milei and Economy Minister Luis Caputo celebrated the lifting of exchange controls—a condition set by the IMF loans—key sectors such as food, construction, and the automobile industry saw steep price increases.
One of the main electoral promises of Milei during the presidential race was to oppose any form of devaluation of the Argentinian peso. The recent agreement with the IMF formally buried Milei’s presidential promise.
In Argentina, the Central Bank’s international reserves recorded a fictitious 50% increase on Tuesday, reaching US $36.8 billion, after receiving the first loan from the IMF as part of a debt package binding the country until 2029.
Javier Milei Deepens Argentina’s IMF Debt Trap With ‘Emergency’ Loan
The IMF agreement includes two additional disbursements this year, of US S2 billion and US $1 billion, contingent on meeting fiscal targets.
The remaining US $5 billion will be distributed in seven semiannual payments until mid−2029. Additionally, the World Bank and IDB will contribute US $22 billion over the next three years.
(Telesur)
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/JRE/SL
