In a move both hailed and questioned, Argentine President Javier Milei has ordered the full declassification of secret government files related to Nazis who fled to Argentina after World War II—along with archives from the country’s own military dictatorship.
The promise of disclosure follows a broader global trend toward transparency, including the U.S. government’s recent release of long-classified files related to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy—documents that, for decades, were withheld from the public under claims of national security.
But with reports of 5,000 Nazis escaping to South America—including top convicted war criminals like Adolf Eichmann and Josef Mengele—some are asking a more explosive question: did Hitler himself survive the war and escape to Argentina?
Cabinet Chief Guillermo Francos confirmed that Milei’s order, made after a meeting with U.S. Senator Steve Daines, applies to all Nazi-related documents across state agencies, including Defense Ministry files and financial records long shrouded in secrecy.
“President Milei has ordered the publication and declassification of the archives,” Francos said. “These files concern Nazis who sought refuge in Argentina and were protected for many years. These are historical documents that should be accessible to the public.”
“There is no reason to continue safeguarding that information,” he added. “These are archives of a part of Argentine history and they have to be public.”
The move also revives a long-held claim—dismissed by mainstream historians but not by everyone—that Adolf Hitler didn’t die in Berlin in 1945, but instead fled via Spain and ended up living out his days under protection in South America.