It is hard to say whether this is an election issue. What is certain is that the image of the armed forces improved a great deal during the Covid pandemic and now the general public (even those who do not follow military matters) feels that the military has been abandoned by the political powers when it comes to the budget.
What is certain is that Argentina is trying to finalise military purchases of:
- Iveco Guarani 6x6 armoured vehicles (156) from Brazil.
- Cougar helicopters (12) from France and light helicopters (20) from India.
- P-3 aircraft (4) to Norway
- F-16 aircraft (USA), HAL Tejas (India) or JF-17 (Pakistan / China).
- Submarines (3) to France or Germany.
And maybe I am forgetting something. Although it seems a huge rearmament, the truth is that if in 20+ years you didn't invest anything in defence, then you have to buy everything together.
Where they will get the money to pay for all this, I don't know.