In recent times, Argentina has accelerated its slide towards a condition neocolonial. If we had to mark a milestone of this process we would say that this trend bursts strongly during the civil-military dictatorship with the outbreak of the crisis external debt, in August 1982. This spread like wildfire throughout Latin America and the Caribbean and accentuated the external vulnerability of our countries. Because, as he shrewdly observed John Quincy Adams, sixth president of the United States, “there are two ways to conquer and enslave a nation: one is the sword; the other is debt.”
The recovery of democracy witnessed an initial attempt by the government of Raul Alfonsin to collectively confront the issue of external debt through the creation of a “Debtors Club” (the Cartagena Group) to negotiate, with a certain parity of forces, with the “Creditors Club.” The Reagan Administration struck down this initiative and shortly after his radical questioning caused the departure of the Minister of Economy, Bernardo Grinspun, and with it the end of heterodox macroeconomic management trials. The foreseeable collapse of the Alfonsinista government paved the way for the neoliberal reincarnation of Peronism. In effect, Menemism was the second act of a project whose first chapter had been carried out by the genocidal dictatorship. Along with the profound neoliberal reforms of the government of Carlos Menemmuch of which still survive to this day, was accentuated Argentina’s dependence on the United Statess, reducing the margins of national autonomy in economic matters and foreign policy. With Kirchnerism, this trend towards the “neocolonization” of Argentina stopped its march but without being completely reversed, despite undoubted advances such as ending the dictatorship of the IMF or the nationalization of the AFJP and the adoption of an independent foreign policy.
Currently there are multiple indicators of the increased severity of this process of growing heteronomy and neocolonial subjugation. The scandal of the private ports on the Paraná Riverthe absolute lack of control over our agricultural exports (but also mining) and the weakness of the State to control the devastating dynamics of the markets (case of inflation, for example) are so many other indications, to which many more could be added, of this progressive loss of sovereignty. But in recent days some more elements have been added: the striking magnanimity of government authorities and American corporations during the tour of the Minister of Economy, Sergio Massa, won’t it demand a compensation from us? Or has it become a philanthropic entity without us realizing it? I don’t think so. It would be a geopolitical watershed, but so far it has not been noticed.
If we look closely at some recent news, we will find strong indications of the aforementioned “neocolonization.” For example, Argentina is consenting to the stealthy installation of a United States military base a few kilometers from Vaca Muerta, without the issue having been discussed in the National Congress or in the Neuquén Legislature, and without having been informed to public opinion. Second: the open interference of the United States ambassador, Mark Stanleyrecommending a strategy of “coalition building”, where all political forces converge with the exception of thirty percent which, coincidentally, is the electoral flow of Kirchnerism. Interference that, unfortunately, did not receive from our Foreign Ministry the response that the diplomatic norms of the Vienna Convention required. Third, the repeated statements of the head of the Southern Command, Laura Richardson, about the need to preserve this true emporium of natural resources that is Latin America for the exclusive use of those of us who live in this part of the world and not for, in his words, “our adversaries and competitors who also know about our riches and come to our neighborhood to take over those resources.” In other words, overloaded Monroeism and hence the need to install a base in Neuquén. Fourth, and most recent, the insolent public intervention of the Amcham (the United States Chamber of Commerce in Argentina) which on September 22 released a document in which it verbatim says: “Depending on the possible treatment today in the Honorable Senate of the Nation on the bill that aims to replace article 21 of Decree Law 1285/58, proposing the substantial expansion of the members of the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nationthe United States Chamber of Commerce in Argentina (Amcham Argentina) expresses its concern at the mere possibility of this happening.” In other words, American companies They are comfortable with the Supreme Court and the Judiciary that we have! For them, cancer of the lawfare It does not exist, it is just the delirium of some hallucinated spirits in the popular field. It is urgent to reverse these trends and rebuild national sovereignty because without it democracy ends up becoming a farce.
* Published on September 24, 2022.
