President Javier Milei stated this Friday that “the espionage that has come to light is of an institutional seriousness rarely seen in history,” referring to a Russian campaign in Argentine media to discredit his administration. “The ‘journalists’ and ‘media’ linked to this are only the tip of the iceberg of something much bigger.” “We will get to the bottom of this to identify all direct and indirect actors who participated in this illegal espionage network,” he wrote on X, as confirmed by the Argentine News Agency. Milei was referring to an investigation that came to light in recent hours, based on 76 leaked documents obtained by the African outlet The Continent and analyzed by a consortium that includes the British outlet openDemocracy. The investigation alleges that a Russian network called “The Company” sought to influence Argentine media to discredit the government of La Libertad Avanza. According to these records, between June and October 2024, the network reportedly budgeted $283,000 to fund at least 250 critical articles in more than 20 outlets in the country about Milei and Argentina's stance on Ukraine. These articles featured non-existent bylines and fabricated content. The content consisted mainly of bad news and critical comments about Argentina's economic situation, the social and human cost of the austerity measures promoted by the Milei administration, and the increase in diplomatic tensions with regional governments. The government reported in 2025 that it had detected a suspected network of Russian agents, and FOPEA (Argentine Journalism Forum) reported on the mechanisms of Russian disinformation in our country.
