Argentina has received US backing to buy two dozen new fighter jets from Denmark as part of a deal that will see the country turn its back on China.
President Javier Milei has ratified an agreement with the White House that will see the US Ministry of Defence speed up bureaucratic procedures enabling his administration to purchase 24 supersonic F-16 planes.
The deal will mean that China is left with one less foothold in South America, with Xi Jinping’s regime having previously floated an unprecedented arrangement for 34 JF-17 planes with the administration of Mr Milei’s predecessor.
The US planes, manufactured by Lockheed Martin, will reportedly be financed by Washington and signify a soft power victory for the Biden administration in a neighbouring continent.
For Argentina, the planes represent a chance for the country to recoup some military might.
Reporting the news this week, Spanish-language publication Infobae said the purchase would allow Argentina to recoup some of its potential.
The paper reported the 24 new planes would “allow the Air Force to recover the war potential it lost during the Malvinas War in 1982”.
The Malvinas War is the Spanish name for the Falklands War, fought on the Islas Malvinas.
During the 10-week war, Argentina’s Air Force was nearly decimated, as Fuerza Aérea Argentina lost over 60 aircraft.
In the years following the war, an initial agreement with the US saw the country gain 24 new Lockheed Martin A-4AR Fightinghawks.
They entered service in 1997 and have served as the Air Force’s backbone in the nearly 30 following years.
The latest clutch of fighters will double the number of serving aircraft to 48, giving the country its largest supply since the Falklands War ended in 1982.
The F-16s will also be Argentina’s first-ever supersonic planes when they enter service.
The country could have received another 10 aircraft, but the number on offer was whittled down by the war in Ukraine.
According to Infobae, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky received those 10 after lobbying the White House.
