Argentine economists hit back at Trump: "We're not starving"
In Argentina, the words of U.S. President Donald Trump continue to resonate.
"They are fighting for their life, they don't have money, they are fighting with all their might to survive," Trump told reporters traveling with him aboard Air Force One between Florida and Washington on Monday, News.Az reports citing foreign media.
His remarks came in the context of the finaancial support that the U.S. Treasury approved this week for Argentina - a $20 billion currency swap - and the announcement that the United States would purchase Argentine beef as a way to lower meat prices domestically.
Trump's statements surprised many in the South American country, including several Argentine economists.
"His words show a lack of understanding of Argentina's economy. We've been in an economic crisis for a long time. Argentina isn't a developed country, but it's not a poor one, either," Guido Zack, director of economics at the Fundar think tank, told UPI.
"It's not a country without food, without money or one that is starving," he said.
Trump's comments are nonsense, said Gustavo Ludmer, an economist at the University of San Andrés. He "isn't well informed about what's happening in Argentina. He supports [President Javier] Milei, but doesn't understand why he wants to keep the dollar cheaper," said Gustavo Ludmer, an economist at the University of San Andrés.
Alejandro Rodríguez, a researcher at the Center for Macroeconomic Studies of Argentina, called Trump's remarks exaggerated.
"Things in Argentina aren't good, but there's a big difference between that and saying we're dying," Rodriguez said.
The U.S. Treasury's assistance aims to prevent the collapse of Argentina's economy, which is struggling with a shortage of U.S. dollars and persistent instability. The swap is intended to inject liquidity into the country's central bank.
There are political and strategic motives behind the decision, said Gustavo Ludmer. "Milei is a strategic ally of Trump. It is a far-right government completely aligned with Trump's geopolitical interests," he said.
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