U.S. sanctions former Argentina president Fernández de Kirchner for corruption
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Photo :JUAN MABROMATA / AFP) (Photo by JUAN MABROMATA/AFP via Getty Images)
The U.S. State Department on Friday sanctioned former Argentinian President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner due to her conviction in a $1 billion fraud scheme.
Why it matters: While a U.S. senator, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other Republicans called for anti-corruption sanctions to be imposed on Kirchner, a leftist, following her conviction in December 2022. The Biden Administration declined.
- Kirchner was serving as vice president at the time of her conviction but left office in 2023. She was previously first lady from 2003-2007 and president from 2007-2015.
- Argentina's current president, Javier Milei, is a right-wing Kirchner foe and Trump ally who has vowed to "Make Argentina Great Again."
Driving the news: The punishment, known as 7030( C) sanctions, forbid Kirchner and her family members — including her grown children — from coming into the United States.
- Also sanctioned was Julio Miguel De Vido, who served as minister of planning under both Kirchner and her husband and was also convicted on corruption charges.
The big picture: Under Trump, Rubio is trying to reorient Latin America toward the American right.
- He had a friendly meeting with Milei in his first overseas trip as secretary of state.
- He's also made common cause with leaders like El Salvador President Nayib Bukele.
Between the lines: Sanctioning Kirchner was also unfinished business from Rubio's Senate days, a senior State Department official told Axios.
- "For a long time, members of Congress — including now-Secretary of State Rubio — have denounced the way in which the Biden Administration sanctioned right-wing officials and spared left wing officials in the region."
Zoom in: Specifically, it irked senators that the Biden Administration sanctioned Paraguay's conservative vice president, Hugo Velázquez, in 2023 and forbid him from traveling to the United States, but didn't impose penalties on Kirchner.
- Texas Sen. Ted Cruz was among Rubio's allies in complaining about the different treatment of Velázquez and Kirchner by the Biden administration.
