“The West is in real danger. That’s why we must come together,” President Javier Millay said.
“My priority is to be an ally of the United States. I will not negotiate with communists,” he declared after his November election victory. To the surprise of almost everyone, his actions are swift, dramatic, and perfectly consistent with his words.
The Biden administration cannot hide its joy that the country that has been at the forefront of intellectual and political trends in Latin America has switched sides. The White House is biting its tongue over Milley’s effusive praise of Donald Trump and focusing on bigger strategic prizes.
The US Secretary of State and the CIA Director rushed to Buenos Aires to conclude the alliance. The same goes for the four-star commander of U.S. Southern Command. “President Milley, I hear you loud and clear,” said General Laura Richardson.
“After all the hype against BRICS, this is quite a blow for China. If Mr. Milley can succeed in this and show that we don’t need China after all, it will have a demonstration effect throughout Latin America.” George Magnus of Oxford University’s China Center said.
Last month, Javier Millay appeared alongside Richardson in naval combat fatigues in the frozen Patagonian port of Ushuaia to announce a joint military base to patrol Antarctica to an enraged public with little advance warning. It cannot be overstated how extraordinary the sight was. The governor of Tierra del Fuego objected to the declaration of the American general as a character and an “accomplice in the British occupation of the Malvinas Islands.”