On November 22, 2025, President Javier Milei announced that Alejandra Monteoliva will take over as Minister of Security and Carlos Alberto Presti as Minister of Defense, replacing Patricia Bullrich and Luis Petri, who will move to Congress on December 10. These appointments mark the first time since 1983 that an active-duty military officer will lead Defense. Both figures promise continuity in the current ministerial policies.
The announcement was made through an official statement from the President's Office, emphasizing that the appointments represent 'a continuity of the course' started on December 10, 2023. Patricia Bullrich, who will assume leadership of the La Libertad Avanza Senate bloc, praised Monteoliva: 'Today I have to share with you that Alejandra Monteoliva will be the new Minister of National Security. I know your background, your professionalism and that dedication that represents you.' Bullrich also celebrated: 'This is the direction the country needs. We are a firm and united team'.
Alejandra Monteoliva, from Córdoba, has been Secretary of Security since June 2024 and boasts nearly three decades of experience in security policies. She graduated from the Faculty of Political Science and International Relations at the Universidad Católica de Córdoba and earned a Master's in Planning and Development Management from Universidad de los Andes in Colombia. She worked with organizations like CAF and BID across Latin America and the Caribbean, served in Córdoba's Ministry of Security, was National Director of Security Operations from 2015 to 2019 under Mauricio Macri's government, and advised the United Nations World Food Programme and UNDP in Central America from 2020 to 2024. Monteoliva thanked Bullrich on X: 'Your way marked a course' and 'Thank you very much for the trust'.
Carlos Alberto Presti, lieutenant general and current Chief of the General Staff of the Army since January 10, 2024, is the first active-duty military officer in the role since the return to democracy in 1983. Born on June 23, 1966, he entered the Colegio Militar de la Nación in 1984 and graduated in 1987 as a second lieutenant in Infantry. He studied at Universidad del Salvador and the Escuela Superior de Guerra. He held key positions such as commander of the IV Airborne Brigade, chief of the 601 Airborne Assault Regiment, and director of the Colegio Militar. He participated in peacekeeping missions in Haiti and served as Defense Attaché in Central American embassies. Presti, who commands 55,000 personnel, stated: 'The Armed Forces must rise to the new leading role that Argentina will have in the world under President Milei.' Luis Petri congratulated him: 'I know you will have an outstanding and successful management because I personally know your capacity, commitment and loyalty to the Homeland'.
Milei welcomed them: 'Welcome Alejandra Monteoliva and Lieutenant General Carlos Presti... VLLC!'. These changes occur as Bullrich and Petri transition to Congress as elected legislators for La Libertad Avanza.
