Overview
- The government announced a roughly 15‑person delegation led by Justice Minister Juan Bautista Mahiques that will travel to Paris between June 15 and 19 to present Argentina’s AML/CTF reforms to the Financial Action Task Force (GAFI).
- Participants include federal judges Ariel Lijo and Sebastián Casanello, UIF head Matías Álvarez, Dajudeco chief Juan Tomás Rodríguez Ponte, and other regulators and central bank officials who will update the National Risk Assessment and technical work by five thematic groups.
- Lijo’s inclusion has raised political concerns because he oversees sensitive probes into senior officials, including an investigation touching Chief of Cabinet Manuel Adorni, and critics say the optics could blur judicial and executive roles.
- Officials in the delegation say the trip is a technical, court‑commissioned mission for judges to explain case progress, and they argue linking the visit to domestic politics is inaccurate as Argentina seeks to show substantive remedial steps to GAFI.
- Argentina remains under intensified GAFI monitoring after a 2024 mutual evaluation and must file a second follow‑up report by December 2026; a favorable outcome affects foreign investment and credit access while negative findings could harm market confidence.