Buenos Aires Herald 
United States President-elect Donald Trump announced that Peter Lamelas, a Cuban-born physician and businessman, will be the next U.S. ambassador to Argentina.
“I am pleased to announce that Dr. Peter Lamelas, MD, MBA, will serve as our United States Ambassador to Argentina,” Trump said in a post on his Truth Social account.
The soon-to-be diplomat thanked Trump “for this incredible honor” in a post on X. He said that under the Republican’s leadership, the “U.S.-Argentina relationship will achieve greatness like never before.”
He also made a grief reference to Argentina, saying that he values President Javier Milei’s fight to “free” the country from “socialism.”
Trump described Lamelas as “a physician, philanthropist, and an incredible businessman,” who founded MD Now Urgent Care, “the largest Urgent Care healthcare company in Florida.”
He also mentioned that Lamelas fled Cuba with his family when he was a child and highlighted that they immigrated “legally” to the U.S., “starting with nothing, and achieving the American Dream.”
During Trump’s first presidential term, Lamelas served on the Department of Justice’s Medal of Valor Review Board and the Florida Board of Medicine. He was also Town Commissioner in Manalapan, Florida.
“Cuban by birth, American by the grace of God,” Lamelas describes himself on his LinkedIn account. His naming will now have to be confirmed by the Senate. There is still no scheduled date as proceedings will begin after Trump takes office January 20.
Lamelas already met Argentine President Javier Milei at Trump’s residence in Mar-a-Lago in November. In an X post days after the event, he shared pictures with Milei and described him as “a leader on a mission to free his country from decades of socialism and mismanagement.” He said the Argentine president has carried out bold reforms such as “cutting deficits, taming inflation, and dismantling policies that stifled Argentina’s potential.”
“Like President Trump, Milei understands that prosperity starts with smaller, efficient government,” Lamelas said, adding that in Cuba he saw “socialism’s devastation firsthand.”
On Tuesday, in a speech celebrating his first year in office, Milei announced he intends to sign a free trade deal with the U.S. Lamelas will likely be part of the negotiations, along with Argentine Foreign Minister Gerardo Werthein — who also met Lamelas at Mar-a-Lago — and recently appointed Argentine Ambassador to the U.S. Alejandro Oxenford.