Milei denies report linking Argentina to Trump deportee scheme

President Javier Milei has pushed back against reports claiming his government is engaged in “advanced talks” on an agreement that would see Argentina receive migrants deported from the United States.

The reports began circulating on Friday after The New York Times published an article suggesting that Buenos Aires and Washington are discussing a scheme under which migrants expelled from the US would be transferred to Argentine territory before returning to their countries of origin. The newspaper said any agreement has not yet been finalised.

According to the Times, an Argentine government official submitted a proposal earlier this month outlining a possible “third-country” arrangement with the United States. Sources familiar with the discussions told the newspaper that while no deal has been closed, negotiations are moving quickly.

The initiative would form part of the mass deportation drive launched by US President Donald Trump’s administration, aimed at deterring irregular border crossings and easing pressure on the US immigration system by transferring deportees to allied countries.

Both a US State Department spokesperson and Argentina’s Foreign Ministry declined to comment on the existence of talks.

Milei addressed the report publicly for the first time on Friday by reposting a message on X from another user describing the information as “100 percent false.”

In its report, the Times noted that for Milei’s government, accepting such transfers would represent a significant gesture to strengthen its alliance with the United States, even at the risk of clashing with its own tough border rhetoric at home. The discussions are said to be taking place as the Casa Rosada steps up domestic migration controls and highlights record expulsion figures.

“Safe third country” mechanisms or similar arrangements are typically used by the United States to relocate nationals of countries with which it has strained or no diplomatic relations, and are also intended as a deterrent to would-be migrants, according to the White House.

– TIMES/NA/PERFIL