Milei orders release of Nazi archives hidden in Argentina
For the first time, the Argentine government will make public classified documents about Nazis who hid in the country after World War II.
Photo: Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 2.0
Argentine President Javier Milei has ordered the declassification of state archives containing information about Nazis who found refuge in the country after World War II.
This was reported by Infobae, citing Chief of Cabinet Guillermo Francos.
The initiative followed a visit to Argentina by U.S. Republican Senator Steve Daines, who has long advocated for public access to these materials.
Also attending the meeting were the senator’s Chief of Staff Darin Thacker, Acting Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy Abigail Dressel, and the senator’s wife, Cynthia Jo Daines.
During the conversation, Daines asked Milei to make the documents publicly accessible.
Milei immediately ordered the release of all available information, including materials from the Ministry of Defense and financial records.
Francos emphasized that there is no reason to keep these documents secret and called them essential for a full understanding of history.
The decision also includes the transfer of intelligence service SIDE’s archives to the National General Archive. It complies with a 2010 decree that previous governments had failed to implement.
According to Francos, the goal is to restore historical truth, not to use the information for political purposes.
For reference, the most infamous Nazi who hid in Argentina was Adolf Eichmann. He was responsible for orchestrating the mass extermination of Jews.
After the war, he fled to Argentina, but in 1960, Israeli intelligence captured him. Eichmann was tried and executed in Israel.