The economic and political course promoted by the government of Javier Milei continues to have repercussions on the world's main financial and intellectual centers. During Argentina Week held in New York, renowned economic historian Sir Niall Ferguson, professor at Harvard University and one of the most influential voices in contemporary economic thought, openly praised the Argentine president and highlighted his character profoundly intellectual of his political leadership.
The Scottish specialist, a nationalized American, participated in a talk with businessman Pierpaolo Barbieri in the JP Morgan building located on Park Avenue, where he analyzed the impact of the reforms promoted by the current Argentine administration. There, he argued that the political phenomenon led by Milei represents an exceptional case in contemporary politics and assured that the Argentine president has an unusual intellectual profile among world leaders
.
“What moved me when Javier Milei burst onto the political scene was that there would be no gradualism if he was elected president,” Ferguson said, recalling the rise of the libertarian leader on the political scene. In this regard, he emphasized that the approach of profound reforms adopted by the Argentine government marked a break with decades of gradualist policies that, according to various analysts, contributed to the country's prolonged
economic crisis.The historian also argued that Milei's thinking is not always understood in international political circles.
“I'm not sure how much it's understood in the United States, and it's certainly not well understood in Europe,” he said, before recounting a meeting he had with the Argentine president last summer with Barbieri himself.According to Ferguson, that conversation left a strong impression on the intellectual level of the Argentine head of state. “I don't think he realized that he's the most radical intellectual libertarian leader the world has ever seen. Not just Argentina, the world. When you sit down with Javier Milei, it's a type of economics seminar. He almost has a professorial style. He is much more intellectual than any politician I have ever met,” said the academic.
The Harvard professor also described the conversations with the president as an academic experience in itself. “It's almost like a reading list,” he laughed, explaining that every meeting with the Argentine president usually ends with new book recommendations or ideas to go deeper. “Every time I talk to him, I come out with homework,” she added.
“He is a man for whom freedom is the central purpose of the government, of his presence in power, and that is stimulating to me,” he said
.The historian also highlighted the speech that the president gave during Argentina Week, pointing out that far from opting for a superficial message or aimed solely at generating applause, he chose to deepen the philosophical foundations of his political program. “I could have come here and given an easy-going political speech. He could have given us a handful of lines to applaud, but no. He carefully explained to us what the political theory of his government is, where the roots of the ideals of freedom come from, why the free market is a moral imperative, and not just one justified by efficiency,” he explained
.For Ferguson, this defense of the free market connects directly with the classic ideas of liberal economics. In that sense, he described Milei as a leader who promotes the principles of Adam Smith with a conviction that is unusual in contemporary politics. “This is something powerful and the exciting thing is that, the more successful it is, the more the rest of the world will have to pay attention to this extraordinary missionary, Javier Milei, who preaches Adam Smith's ideas about the free market as something closely connected to a civil society based on freedom
