In an act of flagrant defiance of the Constitution and popular sentiment, the government of Javier Milei signed a decree authorizing The entry of U.S. Armed Forces personnel and resources into key Argentine naval bases, including Ushuaia, Mar del Plata, and Puerto Belgrano . This decision, published today in the Official Gazette, was made just as the president was being rejected in Tierra del Fuego by a public that denounced the surrender of sovereignty in exchange for dollars to allow them to wait until the national elections on Sunday, October 26.

Decree 697/2025 authorizes the participation of U.S. forces in Exercise "TRIDENTE" between October 20 and November 15, 2025. The choice of bases is highly sensitive:

Ushuaia: The closest logistical and geopolitical point to Antarctica, and the place where the U.S. has expressed interest in establishing a military presence, according to revelations about the "fine print" of the financial agreement.

Puerto Belgrano: The main naval base of the Argentine Navy.

Mar del Plata: Key base for the submarine fleet.

This executive decree is being published without the necessary authorization from the National Congress, violating Article 75, Section 28 of the Constitution, which grants the Legislative Branch the power to "permit the introduction of foreign troops into the territory of the Nation ." The text of the decree only mentions that it will be reported to the Permanent Bicameral Commission, thus circumventing the mandatory parliamentary approval .

The challenge to the Malvinas Cause

The executive branch's actions align with growing evidence that the libertarian government is willing to sacrifice pillars of Argentina's foreign policy . The presence of U.S. troops in Ushuaia not only consolidates the "fine print" of the financial agreement in exchange for sovereignty, but also directly conflicts with the country's historical position on the Malvinas Islands .

Milei's decision directly contradicts the initiative of Representative Agustina Propato (Union for the Homeland), who introduced a bill to prohibit the entry of troops and military infrastructure from countries allied with the United Kingdom. The legislator seeks to protect sovereignty, based on the First Transitory Clause, in the face of the threat posed by the presence of a power, a NATO member and British ally, in strategic bases. Propato herself warned that "the defense of our sovereignty cannot be made more flexible based on economic needs."

Milei's act is a direct response to the social rejection he suffered in Ushuaia, where the population rejected him for his anti-sovereignty stance and the industrial disaster . While Tierra del Fuego society, historically sensitive to the Malvinas Cause, expressed its fury over the potential handover of the territory to a foreign power, the president used the tool of the decree to formalize the United States military interference .

This latest episode confirms the Milei administration's strategy: to use Washington's financial aid as a pretext to consolidate a military alliance that facilitates U.S. interference in areas of high geostrategic value. The publication of the decree in the Official Gazette, amid the campaign crisis and the diplomatic controversy over the salute to Kosovo (whose troops are training in the Malvinas), consummates the act of ceding sovereignty and deepens the conflict with Congress and with the historical position of the Argentine Republic. Sovereignty is exchanged by decree .