Argentine President Javier Milei launched one of the most caustic attacks on the United Nations in recent memory on Wednesday, 23 September 2026, using his third General Debate address to describe the organisation as a “useless” bureaucracy that has abandoned its founding principles.
Milei, a self-described anarcho-capitalist and one of United States (US) President Donald Trump’s closest allies in Latin America, told delegates at the 81st United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) that the body had failed in its core duty to guarantee collective security and human rights.
“The UN has become a useless organisation, serving only to feed a caste of fatally arrogant parasites disguised as well-intentioned bureaucrats,” he said.
The Argentine leader accused the United Nations of allowing what he described as “chaos, violence and international terrorism” to flourish, arguing that the organisation had drifted far from the principles set out in its 1945 charter.
He further accused the body of “looking the other way” on Argentina’s long-standing sovereignty claim over the Falkland Islands — a British overseas territory known in Argentina as Las Malvinas.
“Those who follow the rules receive no reward for doing so, while those who break them face no repercussions whatsoever,” Milei said.
Warning on Falkland Islands: “We Will Take Matters into Our Own Hands“
A significant portion of Milei’s address was devoted to the Falklands dispute, which he described as a “national cause.”
The Argentine president accused the United Kingdom (UK) of flouting United Nations Security Council (UNSC) Resolution 31/49, adopted in 1976, which called on both parties to refrain from unilateral action in the disputed territory.
“An organisation that set out to defend the territorial sovereignty of its members decided to look the other way regarding the situation of the Falkland Islands,” he said.
Milei specifically condemned the Sea Lion oil project, a major offshore development in the North Falkland Basin, describing the exploitation of resources as an “unlawful act.”
His government has already initiated sanctions proceedings against more than 60 companies and individuals linked to the project.
“Argentina is not going to sit around waiting for the UN and the international community to live up to their own mandate,” Milei warned. “We’re going to take matters into our own hands.”
He also reiterated Argentina’s position that the principle of self-determination does not apply to the islands, arguing that the population was “implanted by the occupying power” on contested territory. A 2013 referendum saw 99.8 per cent of islanders vote to remain a British territory.
A “Bureaucratic Leviathan“
Beyond the Falklands, Milei trained his fire on the UN’s broader role, accusing it of evolving into a “bureaucratic leviathan” that sought to dictate how people should live.
He described forced COVID-19 lockdowns as “a global experiment in social control disguised as science” — the rationale, he said, behind Argentina’s withdrawal from the World Health Organization (WHO).
On artificial intelligence (AI), Milei rejected pre-emptive regulation, arguing that fears of technological revolutions eliminating jobs had historically failed to materialise.
He said Argentina would “stand at the forefront of freedom” by committing against such regulation, while advocating limited liability for companies operating with AI agents and tax incentives for the sector.
He also criticised member states for what he described as systematic voting against Israel, and reaffirmed Argentina’s alignment with the West, the United States and Israel.
Participation “In Good Faith“
Despite the ferocity of his criticism, Milei struck a conciliatory note at the close of his remarks, confirming that Argentina would continue to participate in multilateral forums.
“But we mustn’t confuse cooperation with subordination,” he added.
This was Milei’s third address to the UN General Assembly since taking office in December 2023. He has consistently used the platform to criticise global governance, the “woke” agenda, and what he regards as the encroachment of international institutions on national sovereignty.
His remarks on Wednesday drew a sharp contrast with the tone struck by other leaders at the same gathering.
On the same day, Sierra Leone’s President Julius Maada Bio used his address to call for a woman to become the next UN Secretary-General and demanded permanent African representation on the Security Council — a markedly different vision of the organisation’s future.
For Milei, however, the UN’s problem is not a lack of representation but a surfeit of bureaucracy. His address made clear that Argentina will pursue its national interests with or without the organisation’s blessing.
