'Long live freedom, damn it': Why Argentina's President Javier Milei ...

As an outsider candidate, Milei rode a wave of anger over Argentina’s economic woes to win the December election. Under the punchline “there’s no money”, Milei vowed to drastically cut spending, devalue the peso and reduce the size of the state.He has since implemented some of these measures, such as cutting state subsidies for fuel and transport and reducing the number of ministries by half.Adhering to his commitment to frugality, Milei along with his four-member delegation, opted for a standard commercial flight to travel to Davos.Javier Milei journeyed on a Lufthansa flight, routing from Buenos Aires to Zurich via Frankfurt.During the journey, he engaged with fellow passengers, seizing the opportunity to express his critique of what he perceives as the 'socialist agenda' prevalent at the World Economic Forum's gathering in Davos, reports said.Demonstrating a commitment to prudent leadership, Mr. Milei swiftly took action after assuming office by announcing the sale of two aircraft owned by the state-operated oil firm YPF (Yacimientos Petrolíferos Fiscales), a move projected to save $3 billion annually.He also faces the challenge of renegotiating Argentina’s $44 billion debt with the IMF, which has welcomed his decision to eliminate price controls on some goods that were introduced by the previous government.

Milei used his speech to tout free-market capitalism as the only viable solution for poverty and to warn about the dangers of socialism.“I am here today to tell you that the West is in danger,” Milei said. “It is in danger because those who are supposed to have to defend the values of the West are co-opted by a vision of the world that inexorably leads to socialism and thereby to poverty.”Ditching his rock star-like leather jacket for a more sober suit and tie, Milei hailed business leaders as “heroes” who should not be afraid of the “political caste” and “the parasites that live off the state”.“The state is not the solution. The state is the problem,” he said. “You are the true protagonists in this story. You should know that from now on, you can count on Argentina as an unconditional ally,” Milei added, ending his speech with his battle cry, “long live freedom, damn it!”

Milei’s speech drew praise from right-wing figures on social media platform X, whose owner Elon Musk, wrote “true” in response to a video of the speech.When introducing Milei, WEF founder Klaus Schwab said that while some describe the new president’s methods as “radical”, he has introduced “a new spirit to Argentina, making Argentina much more related to free enterprise, to entrepreneurial activities”.Some in the audience gathered to shake his hand and take pictures as he left the congress hall, while others expressed skepticism or criticism of his views.

Milei told reporters that he came to Davos to “plant the ideas of freedom, which are the ideas that bring progress and put an end to poverty”. He added: “We came to warn about the risks of socialism which is the machine to impoverish and kill people.”He also said he had an “excellent” meeting with IMF chief Kristalina Georgieva and they would “continue to work together … to find a solution”. Georgieva also said their meeting went “very well” and later tweeted that that they had discussed the “decisive steps underway to bring down inflation, promote private sector led growth”.Before his speech, Milei met with British foreign minister David Cameron and the pair discussed the Falkland Islands, the British-held territory which Buenos Aires and London went to war over in 1982. Using the Argentine name for the islands, Milei said the meeting was “excellent” and that they “talked about the possibility of dialogue and cooperation”. Cameron said they had a “constructive” conversation and agreed to “work together on areas of mutual interest”.