A sudden visit by a bipartisan U.S. congressional delegation to Ushuaia, Argentina’s southernmost city and the so-called “gateway to Antarctica,” has set off a wave of political alarm and speculation in Buenos Aires. A U.S. Air Force Boeing C-40 transport touched down in Tierra del Fuego and the U.S. embassy confirmed members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee were on board, but declined to name individuals or provide a detailed public itinerary.
The embassy said the delegation met with national and provincial officials and stakeholders to discuss environmental degradation, mining permits and waste management, critical-minerals processing and public-health and medical security. Local opposition figures, however, have interpreted the visit through a security prism: Tierra del Fuego’s legal secretary, Gustavo Fossato, said the delegation failed to coordinate with the provincial government, and Senator López demanded an explanation from President Javier Milei’s administration, warning that “Tierra del Fuego is not a foreign military base.”
The stopover has revived earlier sensitivities. Since President Milei took office, Ushuaia has hosted two commanders of U.S. Southern Command, both of whom visited a proposed integrated naval base project that Argentina announced in 2022. The Milei government has publicly denied that the United States is involved in port or naval-base planning, yet the optics of repeated high-level U.S. military and congressional visits have intensified domestic scrutiny.
Complicating matters, three days before the congressional delegation arrived Argentina’s national government ordered a 12-month administrative takeover of the Port of Ushuaia, citing alleged financial irregularities and severe infrastructure defects. The move provoked a sharp reaction from Governor Gustavo Melella, who called the accusations baseless and accused the central government of overreach in a province that prizes its sovereignty and Antarctic links.
Ushuaia’s strategic value is not merely symbolic. It is a primary embarkation point for Antarctic cruises and scientific logistics, and while its freight throughput is not the country’s largest, its position on the southern tip of South America gives it outsized importance for Antarctic access, maritime search-and-rescue and potential polar logistics. That mix of tourism, science and strategic access makes any foreign presence — whether diplomatic, scientific or military — politically sensitive in Argentina and regionally consequential.
The episode matters beyond a provincial controversy. It highlights growing U.S. interest in the South Atlantic and Antarctic approaches at a time when competition over critical minerals, polar infrastructure and influence in the Global South is intensifying. For Milei, who has forged a close ideological and personal rapport with former U.S. President Donald Trump and has signalled a desire for closer ties with Washington, the incident tests his ability to balance geopolitical opening with domestic sovereignty concerns and opposition scrutiny.