Milei's welcome to Netanyahu will open Pandora's Box in Argentina

When Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu lands in Buenos Aires this September, he’ll test more than Argentina’s hospitality — he’ll force a reckoning with the President Javier Milei’s gamble: Is Argentina’s fervent alignment with Israel a strategic masterstroke or a geopolitical liability?

This alignment stems from Milei’s ideologically Manichean worldview, framing global conflicts as a battle between absolute good (Israel/West) and evil (Iran/leftists). Determined to be on the "right side of history," he has visited Israel twice since taking office, including a trip in June 2025 just days before Israel's strike on Iran.

Moreover, Milei’s devotion to Israel borders on the mystical — a Catholic who studies Kabbalah and offers tearful prayers at the Western Wall with rabbis, treating Zionism as both political ideology and personal spiritual awakening.

It remains to be seen whether such devotion will deliver Argentina tangible returns beside Israel’s rhetorical nods, such as the foreign minister Gideon Saar’s repurposing of Milei’s slogan “Viva la libertad, carajo” (Long Live Freedom, Damn It) for the airstrike on Tehran's Evin prison which killed 79 people.

Meanwhile, Netanyahu’s planned visit has sparked growing concerns among political observers and security experts in Argentina about possible repercussions.

For one, Netanyahu's visit would immediately test Argentina's commitment to international law, as the arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) against him last November obligates Buenos Aires — a Rome Statute signatory — to arrest him on arrival. Milei's likely refusal would confirm critics' claims that his alliance with Israel trumps international obligations. The irony is particularly sharp given Argentina's exemplary prosecution of its own officials for crimes against humanity during the 1976-1983 military dictatorship.

Second, Milei’s invitation for Netanyahu to visit Argentina, even as he faces the ICC indictment and Israel growing international isolation over its war in Gaza, marks a radical break from Argentina's tradition of maintaining neutrality in the Israel-Palestine conflict. In his 18 months in office, Milei has so far announced plans to move Argentina's embassy to West Jerusalem by 2026, and Argentina’s vote at the UN General Assembly against a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza (joined by only 11 other nations) risked alienating many of the 149 countries that supported it, including traditional partners in the Arab world, Latin America (including Argentina’s biggest neighbor and trading partner, Brazil), the Global South more generally, and some key European countries.

Argentine security analysts warn these moves could make the country a target for retaliation by Iran or its allies. A recent detailed report on the June’s 12-day war between Israel and Iran submitted by Iran’s mission to the UN, listed Argentina among nations that supported the Israeli/U.S. attacks. Critics fear that Milei may have compounded the risks of retaliation by explicitly declaring Iran an “enemy” of Argentina. That stance is shared by many Argentines who regard Iran’s support for Hamas as amounting to complicity in the latter’s October 7, 2023, attack on Israel in which 21 Argentines were killed or taken hostage.

Critics don’t fear direct Iranian retaliation so much as action by Tehran’s allies, such as Lebanese Hezbollah, or domestic groups opposed to Milei's Israel policy.

Argentina's traumatic history lends credence to these concerns: the 1992 Israeli embassy bombing and the 1994 AMIA Jewish community center attack, in which 85 people were killed, were linked to Iran and Hezbollah. Despite the conclusion by Israel’s own Mossad intelligence, that Hezbollah (with no “operational involvement” by Iran) was behind the bombings, no one has ever been convicted for the crimes, and Argentina's own numerous investigations have been plagued by alleged cover-ups, incompetence and political interference.

The 2015 death of prosecutor Alberto Nisman, just hours before he intended to formally charge then-President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner with shielding Iranian suspects in the AMIA bombing, remains a major source of speculation and controversy in Argentina. While the official cause of his death was suicide, one court ruled in 2018 that he was murdered, although the judge in the case failed to establish who was the perpetrator or what was the motive.

A visit by Netanyahu risks reviving these deep emotional wounds and still-unresolved controversies. Argentina’s Jewish community (the largest in Latin America) is divided on the subject. Jorge Knoblovits, head of the Delegation of Argentine Jewish Associations (DAIA), dismissed concerns that closer ties with Israel could lead to new attacks on Argentine soil. "The whole world is exposed to terrorism. It has struck under all types of governments, left and right," he said.

In contrast, Pablo Gorodneff of the Jewish group Llamamiento Argentino Judío, noted that a key principle of foreign policy is "don't get involved in conflicts that aren't yours," adding that Milei "in some ways sincerely... believes this fabricated narrative, which I find quite dangerous." He is backed by Héctor Shalom, director of the Anna Frank Center Argentina, who warned that if extremists seek "to strike Jews," Argentina's history of impunity for the two major attacks – emblematic of its vulnerability – makes it a prime target.

Moreover, security vulnerabilities intersect with potential economic risks, diplomatic backlash and reputational costs. Alienating Arab and Muslim-majority markets could damage Argentina's critical commodities and agricultural exports.

It could also limit the potential for new partnerships with the Persian Gulf states: in late 2024, the National Congress hosted a meeting with representatives of Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Kuwait to discuss prospects for investments of their sovereign wealth funds in Argentina. Milei’s predecessor government negotiated an inventive formula with Qatar to secure a $775 million loan to help Buenos Aires repay its debt to the International Monetary Fund.

On the diplomatic front, Netanyahu’s visit to Buenos Aires also risks undermining Argentina’s appeals to international law as the basis for its claims against Britain in a long-running dispute over the Malvinas (Falklands) islands. The two countries fought a brief but deadly war over the islands in 1982. While most countries of the Global South supported Argentina’s claims precisely on the basis of international law, Milei’s vocal support for Israel in its current war in Gaza capped by a Netanyahu visit will not be well received by those same capitals.

Milei's Israel infatuation appears driven more by his personal convictions than a prudent national interest calculus. While it may curry favor in Washington, the security and diplomatic risks are tangible. Netanyahu's potential visit will reveal whether this policy delivers strategic benefits or exposes Argentina to dangerous consequences for years to come.