
An increase in the number of Covid-19 cases has been reported by local media this week in Argentina -particularly in the City of Buenos Aires, the Province of Buenos Aires, Chaco, Jujuy, and Tucumán- and some people are beginning to fear an encore of the 2020 lockdown measures in the winter season.

A past river patrol boat from the Argentine Coast Guard was deployed from the port of Posadas in the northern province of Misiones to the Paraná River shores of Rosario in the province of Santa Fe to join the local anti-drug trafficking efforts, it was reported. The move was ordered by Security Minister Patricia Bullrich, it was explained.

Argentine President Javier Milei Tuesday held successive telephone conversations with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to deepen his government's international outreach. Also participating in the conversations was Argentine Foreign Minister Diana Mondino.

Argentine Foreign Minister Diana Mondino is to meet on Thursday or Friday with Chinese Ambassador Wang Wei to discuss a US$ 6.5 billion currency swap brokered by former Economy Minister Sergio Massa last year, among other topics.

Argentine President Javier Milei returned this weekend to the mainland after touring the Marambio and Esperanza Bases in Antarctica, it was reported in Buenos Aires.

Argentine President Javier Milei praised Economy Minister Luis Toto Caputo for his management of the country's inflation for December 2023 and said that if it reached 30% it would be “a great number” because previous estimates spoke of 45%.

The Argentine government, through the Federal Fisheries Council has officially opened the Illex squid season south of parallel 49. The two main fisheries chambers, CAIPA and CEPA had requested that the season begin 10 January south of parallel 44, but the Council in early December denied the request based on a scientific report from INIDEP, the National Institute of Fisheries Research and Development.

Health authorities in the Argentine province of Corrientes (northeast) Friday confirmed the death of a patient who had tested positive for dengue, thus increasing the number of fatalities to three this summer.

Argentine President Javier Milei landed at around 8.30 pm Friday in Río Gallegos to stay the night before flying on to the Marambio Base in Antarctica. Traveling with the head of state were Ministers Diana Mondino (Foreign Affairs), Guillermo Francos (Interior), and Luis Petri (Defense) as well as Presidential Secretary Karina Milei, among other officials making up the entourage of 23.

Contradicting reports in Buenos Aires Friday concurred that Sergio Pikholtz was no longer Vice President of the Delegation of Argentine-Israeli Associations (DAIA) after posting on social media that there were no innocents in Gaza.