A parallel agenda in New York
While Javier Milei participates in the UN General Assembly, Axel Kicillof traveled to New York on Tuesday to hold meetings with business leaders and provincial bondholders, as well as an activity with Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Spanish President Pedro Sánchez. The Buenos Aires governor aims to strengthen ties with the financial establishment and potential investors, a move seen as preparation for the next electoral cycle after signals sent at Saturday's event in Villa Domínico.[S1]
Government Minister Carlos Bianco confirmed at Monday's press conference that the agenda includes a meeting with investment funds that are creditors of the province and another with representatives of large companies—some with investments in Buenos Aires territory—from sectors including electric energy, renewable energies, oil and gas, mining, grain trading, logistics, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, financial and technology services, insurance, artificial intelligence, IT infrastructure, software, and media.[S1]
Debt repayment and business ties
The province of Buenos Aires restructured its debt and later closed agreements with creditors who had been left out of the swap. In what may preview Kicillof's message, Bianco emphasized that many of the commitments originated from María Eugenia Vidal's administration and that the current government has complied with the payment schedule. He stated that they are taking care, as Peronism always has, of paying on time and in full.[S1]
Kicillof will also participate on Tuesday in New York in a roundtable with academics and intellectuals from the United States and other countries at The New School, debating the theme 'Latin America at the crossroads: the future of democracy, economy and politics in a fractured world.' The following day he will share a breakfast with Mayor Zohran Mamdani, Spanish President Pedro Sánchez, and other representatives of nations attending the UN General Assembly, under the slogan 'Building an economy for the majority.' The day will conclude with a public conference at Columbia University, organized by the Institute of Latin American Studies, and media interviews.[S1]
Criticism of Milei and economic outlook
Accompanying Kicillof are Bianco, ministers Pablo López (Economy) and Jesica Rey (Public Communication), Juan Manuel Padín (Undersecretary of International Relations), and advisor Cecilia Nicolini. Kicillof had also traveled to New York last year with a parallel agenda to the UN, attending the 'Democracy Always' summit with Lula da Silva, Yamandú Orsi, Pedro Sánchez, Bernie Sanders, Gustavo Petro, and Gabriel Boric, among others.[S1]
In line with his criticism of Milei's economic model, the Buenos Aires governor has recently made gestures toward business leaders. He said that Milei's model is destroying workers, their families, their salaries, and their lives, but also the productive and commercial system, and Argentine businessmen in every region and province. He added that they are Peronists and for Peronism it is the workers, national businessmen, and the State that enables a development process.[S1]
Kicillof returned to that line on Monday before departing for New York. He said it is false to say that businessmen, even if they are going bankrupt, support this program. He called it a construction of the right, the government, and power sectors, and noted that there are desires among the business community for a federal plan with an internal market, consumption capacity, and demand. Bianco warned that the Argentine economy is on the brink of recession, citing a 0.6% drop in GDP, a 2.4% fall in private consumption, a 2.3% decline in public consumption, and a 0.8% decrease in investment. He also discussed the application of artificial intelligence to management and the regulations of the Buenos Aires administration through resolutions and decrees, contrasting with the positions of Milei and Donald Trump.[S1]
