Trying To Play The U.S. And China, Argentina Is Attempting A Difficult Balancing Act

Was Sergio Massa’s rcent visit to China to “beg” for a couple billion yuan humiliating, as some of the government’s detractors suggest, or a pragmatic necessity in order to keep Argentina from imploding, as sources in the Economy Ministry suggest? Why was Máximo Kirchner, a national deputy who is clearly the vice-president’s political ambassador, even there? Was he there for a behind-the-scenes political negotiation with Massa regarding who would lead the presidential ticket in the upcoming PASO primaries, or was it an intelligent demonstration of political continuity that should be well received in a culture with a different relationship to time and cherishing the long term? As has become the norm in the times of polarization, any and all questions traversed by political subjectivity will be analyzed according to one’s preconceptions which are determined by the binary logic of “la grieta.” The best antidote, therefore, is critical scepticism.

One of the defining features of Massa’s tenure at the Economy Ministry has been to project an image of swiftness lacking in his real predecessor, Martín Guzmán. Massa, like Buenos Aires City Mayor Horacio Rodríguez Larreta, pride themselves in being politicians that get things done. “Gestión,” which literally translates as management, direction or administration, has gained a connotative charge in the world of Argentine politics. It is the desired concept by which they would like to be described in focus groups and opinion polls, and it is generally cultivated by releasing multiple and consistent photo-ops, giving many press conferences, and making constant announcements. Being associated with procrastination, on the other hand, can be a death sentence. Just ask President Alberto Fernández and former minister Guzmán. Both of them would retort that they weren’t allowed to be efficient and productive, given the intrusion of Cristina Fernández de Kirchner and her acolytes. Ah, the beauty of Peronism.