Milei's government signed an agreement with the Pentagon for 207 Stryker armored vehicles

Recently, the Government of Javier Milei signed an agreement with the United States for the acquisition of 207 Stryker armored vehicles, which will be incorporated into the Army with the objective of reinforcing controls in border areas.

The letter of commitment was signed by the Minister of Defense, Luis Petri, and the U.S. Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, during an official ceremony held in Washington.

“Argentina is advancing in the modernization of its Armed Forces and strengthening its military ties with the United States,” Petri stated through his official account on X.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Defense issued a statement highlighting that the meeting between both officials allowed them to “explore ways to deepen and institutionalize the defense relationship between the United States and Argentina and deter malign influence in the Western Hemisphere,” in a clear reference to the growing presence of the Chinese communist regime in Latin America.

What are Strykers

Stryker armored vehicles are used by the United States for surveillance and security tasks on the border with Mexico. They were also deployed in conflict zones such as Iraq and Afghanistan, and currently form part of the Ukrainian arsenal in its fight against Russia.

The Stryker is an 8x8 wheeled armored personnel carrier, capable of transporting up to nine personnel, including driver and commander. It can be used as infantry transport and its standard equipment includes machine guns, grenade launchers, and anti-tank missile systems.

Each unit has an estimated cost of around two million dollars. According to the agreement, the Pentagon will send a first batch of eight vehicles between December 2025 and March 2026.

To move forward with this commercial operation, Milei's government must make an initial payment of five million dollars. Subsequently, in a second phase, another 22 units will be added to the inventory.

Unlike the purchase of six F-16 fighter jets from Denmark, where there was U.S. financial support, in the case of the 207 Strykers no type of financing from the United States is planned.

The agreement signed between Luis Petri and Pete Hegseth represents the strategic relationship established between presidents Javier Milei and Donald Trump. Washington supports Buenos Aires both in its negotiations with the International Monetary Fund and in the strengthening of its military capabilities.

The 207 Strykers destined for the Argentine Army will be used mainly for patrolling and border control tasks. This reinforcement takes place in an international context marked by the conflicts between Israel and the United States against Iran and its allied terrorist groups.

One of the most sensitive points in Argentine defense policy continues to be the Triple Frontier, where the Hezbollah group operated with relative ease in the past, taking advantage of the convergence between Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina. Various investigations link terrorist cells based in that area to the attacks against the Israeli embassy and the AMIA headquarters.

According to intelligence reports shared by the United States and Israel, security attention is no longer focused solely on the Triple Frontier: it now also extends to the border area with Bolivia. The administration of the Bolivian president, the socialist Luis Arce, has established ties with the Iranian regime, which has allowed Shiite terrorism to find a new operational base in the south of the continent.

In this international scenario, and after the signing of the agreement with the U.S. Department of Defense, Minister Luis Petri highlighted the recent air operation led by the United States to dismantle Iran's nuclear program.

“Trump's leadership in the conflict with Iran left a clear lesson: democracies must have deterrence capability to defend their values and the freedom of their compatriots. Since Milei took office, Argentina is following that same path,” Petri stated, accompanied by Secretary Pete Hegseth.

He concluded emphatically: “The Iranian regime understood it harshly: the destruction of its nuclear facilities was the result of a courageous decision. Trump showed that there is no negotiation with terrorists, they are defeated. We believe the same.”

During the meeting, Petri extended an official invitation to Hegseth to visit Argentina. Everything indicates that the Secretary of Defense could arrive in Buenos Aires before the end of 2025. By then, if the established deadlines are maintained, the country will already have the six F-16 aircraft acquired from Denmark and the first eight Stryker armored vehicles operational in the Army.