Argentina declined on Sunday to endorse a key United Nations pact that aims for member countries to commit to action on issues including peace, poverty, climate change, and gender equality.
Foreign Minister Diana Mondino announced that Argentina would distance itself from the 56-point Pact for the Future while speaking at the Summit of the Future at the UN’s General Assembly in New York. She said the country’s decision was based on prioritizing the defense of economic freedom and private property.
“Many points in this pact go against or would hold back Argentina’s new agenda,” Mondino said. She explained that work on the document started in 2022, during the Alberto Fernández government, and that negotiations were “advanced” when Javier Milei became president. “Nevertheless, we proposed constructive actions that were not always taken into account, and that led to us deciding to dissociate ourselves [from the pact].”
“I assure you that my country is willing to continue working, as it always has, to rethink together the way forward in the face of urgent new global challenges that test us as humanity,” she said in her speech.
She also pointed out that the pact consists of non-legally binding aspirations, which every State can interpret autonomously.
The UN’s Pact for the Future, also referred to as the “2045 agenda” by critics, includes points on the empowerment of women and girls, stronger action on climate change, AI regulation, and upholding human rights. The 42-page document, which UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has described as a bet on multilateralism, was adopted on Sunday.
All 193 UN member countries are expected to take action on the points of the pact.
Russia proposed a series of amendments to several of the pact’s points, on the grounds that “no one is happy with this text.” However, the representative of Congo-Brazzaville proposed a motion that no action be taken on the draft amendment, saying “unity” was needed. That motion was adopted by 143 in favor to 7 against (Belarus, North Korea, Iran, Nicaragua, Russia, Sudan, and Syria). Argentina was not present during the vote.
The Assembly then adopted the Pact for the Future without a vote.
“Today at the UN we dissociated ourselves from the Pact for the Future,” Mondino wrote on X on Sunday. “Argentina wants the freedom to develop itself, without being subjected to the undue weight of decisions that are alien to our goals.”
Speaking to the UN’s General Assembly, Mondino said “an agenda must not end in mere statements” and that there should be an explanation of “how things are going to be done,” adding that, for the Argentine government, “the only model that can achieve that is economic freedom.”
“Hunger will end by guaranteeing more trade, not less; and development can be achieved by strengthening respect for institutions, fundamentally prioritizing respect for private property,” Mondino said.
The Foreign Minister added that Argentina will continue to take the UN’s Charter as a guide, but that any deviation from its principles and objectives “creates problems” for Argentina and other countries.
On Sunday, Worship and Civilization Secretary Nahuel Sotelo shared the news by saying that “in Argentina, there is no place for totalitarian international agendas.”
While it will not be legally binding, the Pact for the Future will be referenced in UN documents and resolutions as a commitment for all governments in order to comply with the UN Charter, which is legally binding.
President Milei traveled to New York with Mondino and will also be speaking at the UN’s General Assembly on Tuesday. On Monday, he is scheduled to speak with investors at the New York Stock Exchange and later meet Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who Milei admires.
Milei will also be speaking at the United States Council on Foreign Relations on Monday.
Updated with additional information, 2:02 p.m. An earlier version of this story stated that Argentina had refused to “sign” the pact. It has been updated to clarify that, while the pact was adopted without a vote, Argentina expressed that it would “dissociate” itself from the pact.