Argentina–Israel relations

History

20th century

Argentina has a long history of the Jewish population dated back to the 16th century. On 29 November 1947, Argentina was among the 10 countries that abstained from voting in the United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine. Argentina established diplomatic relations with Israel on 31 May 1949, a year after its independence.

Relations between the two were tested during the early years of Nazi hunting when Israel's Mossad kidnapped former Nazi Adolf Eichmann despite Argentine protestations of a violation of its sovereignty. Immediately after World War II, Argentina was a safe haven for former Nazi officials because they brought badly needed capital investment and/or technical expertise.

According to declassified British Foreign and Commonwealth Office documents, Israel sold arms to Argentina before and during the Falklands War in 1982. The arms sales to Argentina included Douglas A-4 Skyhawk jets, which would later be used in the war with the United Kingdom.

Carlos Menem was the first head of state of Argentina to make a diplomatic visit to Israel, in 1991. He proposed to mediate between Israel and Syria in their negotiations over the Golan Heights. However, the relations were further tested when Hezbollah was blamed for bombing the Israeli embassy and a Jewish community centre in 1992 and 1994, respectively. Since 2013, roughly 100 Jewish organisations across Argentina have called for the government to repeal its pact with the Islamic Republic of Iran over the AMIA terrorist attacks.

21st century

While Argentina has the largest Jewish population in Latin America, there have been various cases of anti-Semitism in Argentina, such as the desecration of 58 Jewish graves in La Tablada by unknown peoples in 2009, mostly due to negative stereotypes of Jews controlling business interests and dominating the world through capitalism, as well as Israel's affiliation with the United States.

In 2010, Argentina announced the intention to join Brazil in recognising an independent Palestinian state, provoking sharp criticism from Israel. On 6 December 2010, Argentina subsequently recognised the State of Palestine on the borders of 4 June 1967 (i.e., the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem), which constituted Arab territory prior to the Six-Day War. In 2012, Argentine President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner met an Israeli-Palestinian delegation and announced that Argentina would spearhead the Latin American role in reinvigorating the peace process in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict.

In September 2017, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu paid an official visit to Argentina, becoming the first Israeli Prime Minister in office to visit Argentina and Latin America.

In March 2019, two Iranian citizens used fake Israeli passports to leave Spain and different fake Israeli passports to enter Argentina. Realising that the passports were fraudulent, Argentinian police arrested the suspects. Argentinian prosecutors discovered that the suspects had previously used fake passports to enter other countries, including Portugal.

In January 2020, President Alberto Fernández travelled to Israel for his first presidential trip abroad. There he paid respects to the victims of the Holocaust and maintained a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who thanked him for keeping Hezbollah branded as a terrorist organisation, a measure taken by Fernández's predecessor Mauricio Macri.

In the aftermath of the 2023 Argentine general election and Javier Milei's victory, President-elect Milei pledged to move the Argentine Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, and announced as part of "a spiritual trip" alongside rabbis he studies with, Milei would visit the Western Wall and Israel before his inauguration on 10 December 2023. In December 2023, President Javier Milei announced that his government is working on designating Hamas as a terrorist organization. In February 2024, Argentinian President Javier Milei visited Israel, making Israel his first bilateral overseas destination as president. In May 2024, President Javier Milei's government broke with Argentina's previous position on Palestine, voting against recognition of Palestinian statehood at United Nations. The vote was in line with the country’s pro-Israel shift in its foreign policy.

In June 2025, Milei reaffirmed his pledge to move the embassy to Jerusalem, aiming for the spring of 2026, and El Al announced plans to launch direct passenger flights between the two countries.

Isaac Accords

In August 2025, the Isaac Accords, which are modeled on the 2020 Abraham Accords, were officially announced. The Isaac Accords are a diplomatic initiative inspired by Argentine President Javier Milei's receipt of the Genesis Prize that aims to strengthen political, economic, and cultural cooperation between Israel and various Latin American countries, starting with Uruguay, Panama, and Costa Rica. The nonprofit organization American Friends of the Isaac Accords (AFOIA) was also launched in the same month. The organization was established with an initial US$1 million from the Genesis Prize Foundation, in honor of Milei's acceptance of the Genesis Prize in Jerusalem on June 12, 2025.

Resident diplomatic missions

• Argentina has an embassy in Tel Aviv.
• Israel has an embassy in Buenos Aires and honorary consulates in Córdoba and Mendoza.

References

References

1. (10 December 2023). "Javier Milei designó a su rabino como embajador de la Argentina en Israel". [[Infobae]].
2. Novaresio, Luis. (21 October 2019). "Eyal Sela, el nuevo embajador de Israel en la Argentina: ¿Cómo puede ser que todavía no haya justicia en los casos de AMIA y Embajada?". [[Infobae]].
3. "Biblioteca Nacional de Tratados [National Treaties Library]".
4. Blair, David. (24 August 2016). "Israel sold weapons to Argentina at height of Falklands War, reveal declassified Foreign Office files". The Telegraph.
5. Reich, Bernard. (2008). "Historical Dictionary of Israel". Scarecrow Press.
6. (6 February 2014). "AMIA: la comunidad judía pedirá derogar el acuerdo". La Nacion.
7. Lev, David. (28 January 2013). "Argentine Jews Slam 'Truth Commission' Deal With Iran". [[Arutz Sheva]].
8. (5 October 2011). "No sé por qué a los judíos nos odian tanto". La Nacion.
9. (8 February 2009). "Jews in S. America Increasingly Uneasy". The Washington Post.
10. Perasso, Valeria. (15 September 2009). "¿Crece el antisemitismo en Argentina?". BBC Mundo.
11. Braylan, Marisa. (2013). "Informe sobre antisemitismo en la Argentina en 2012".
12. Doberti, Javier. (18 May 2009). "Anti-Semitic violence stirs concern in Argentina". CNN.
13. (11 November 2013). "Argentina anti-Semitism drops overall, grows online". Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
14. Akiva Eldar. (11 February 2012). "Argentine President calls for regional involvement in Israeli-Palestinian conflict". Haaretz.
15. Government of Argentina. (6 December 2010). "La Republica Argentina ha reconocido a Palestina como Estado libre e independiente". Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
16. (11 September 2017). "Netanyahu Touches Down in Argentina for 'Historic' Latin America Visit". Haaretz.
17. Einhorn, Alon. (March 25, 2019). "Argentinian Minister Reveals Details on Iranians with Israeli Passports". [[The Jerusalem Post]].
18. (24 January 2020). "Alberto Fernández, a Netanyahu: "Nuestro compromiso por saber la verdad de lo que pasó en la AMIA es absoluto"". Infobae.
19. (24 January 2020). "Benjamin Netanyahu felicitó a Alberto Fernández por mantener la postura contra Hezbollah". Perfíl.
20. (20 November 2023). "Argentina's Milei Plans 'Spiritual' Trip to US and Israel Before Taking Office". Bloomberg.com.
21. "Who is Argentina's Israel-loving president-elect, Javier Milei?".
22. (21 November 2023). "President-Elect Javier Milei Promises 'Spiritual' Israel Trip, Will Move Embassy to Jerusalem - The Jewish Voice".
23. (2023-11-20). "With an Israeli flag and a chainsaw: 'Trump of Argentina' elected president". Ynetnews.
24. (23 December 2023). "Milei confirmó que el Gobierno "está trabajando" para declarar a Hamas como organización terrorista". [[La Nación]].
25. (6 February 2024). "Argentina's Milei feted and criticised for Jerusalem embassy plan". France 24.
26. (10 May 2024). "Which nine countries voted against Palestine's UN membership?". The National.
27. Eichner, Itamar. (2025-05-29). "Argentina's president to visit Israel, reaffirm embassy move to Jerusalem". Ynetnews.
28. Melamed, Juan. "Argentina's ambassador to Israel says El Al to begin direct Buenos Aires flights".
29. (2025-08-12). "Milei launches initiative boost Israel–Latin America ties".
30. (2025-08-12). "Argentine leader Milei launches initiative to boost Israel-Latin America ties".
31. [http://eisra.mrecic.gov.ar Embassy of Argentina in Tel-Aviv (in Spanish)]
32. [http://embassies.gov.il/buenos-aires/Pages/Embajada_de_Israel_en_Argentina.aspx Embassy of Israel in Buenos Aires (in Spanish)]