Felipe Solá (born 23 July 1950) is an

Argentine Argentines, Argentinians or Argentineans are people from Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical, or cultural. For most Argentines, several (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their ...

agricultural engineer and politician. He previously served as

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

Buenos Aires Province Buenos Aires, officially the Buenos Aires Province, is the largest and most populous Provinces of Argentina, Argentine province. It takes its name from the city of Buenos Aires, the capital of the country, which used to be part of the province an ...

, from 2002 to 2007, and as Minister of Foreign Affairs and Worship under President

Alberto Fernández Alberto Ángel Fernández (; born 2 April 1959) is an Argentine politician, lawyer, and academic who served as President of Argentina from 2019 to 2023. He was also the Chief of the Cabinet of Ministers from 2003 to 2008. His tenure as Cabin ...

, from 2019 to 2021. Solá was also Secretary of Agriculture during the presidency of

Carlos Menem Carlos Saúl Menem (2 July 1930 – 14 February 2021) served as the 50th president of Argentina for ten years, from 1989 to 1999. He identified as Peronism, Peronist, serving as President of the Justicialist Party for 13 years (from 1990 to 200 ...

, and served as Vice Governor of Buenos Aires under Carlos Ruckauf until Ruckauf's resignation in 2002. From 2007 to 2019, he was a member of the

Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourb ...

Early life and personal life

Felipe Solá was born in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

and raised in the upscale Recoleta neighborhood. Solá graduated from the

University of Buenos Aires The University of Buenos Aires (, UBA) is a public university, public research university in Buenos Aires, Argentina. It is the second-oldest university in the country, and the largest university of the country by enrollment. Established in 1821 ...

as an agricultural engineer in 1981. Upon graduation Solá worked as a university professor, journalist, and economics counselor and researcher. He married María Teresa González in 1982, and they had two children; the couple were separated in 2003. He met María Elena Cháves in

La Plata La Plata () is the capital city of Buenos Aires province, Argentina. According to the 2022 Argentina census, census, the La Plata Partido, Partido has a population of 772,618 and its metropolitan area, the Greater La Plata, has 938,287 inhabit ...

in 2004, and the two have lived in his home in Pilar since 2007.

Early political career

Solá was appointed Minister of Agricultural Affairs by

Governor Antonio Cafiero in 1987. Newly elected President

named him Secretary of Agriculture, Livestock and Fishing in 1989, and in

1991 It was the final year of the Cold War, which had begun in 1947. During the year, the Soviet Union Dissolution of the Soviet Union, collapsed, leaving Post-soviet states, fifteen sovereign republics and the Commonwealth of Independent State ...

he was elected to the

Argentine Chamber of Deputies The Chamber of Deputies (), officially the Honorable Chamber of Deputies of the Argentine Nation, is the lower house of the Argentine National Congress (). It is made up of 257 national deputies who are elected in multi-member constituencies c ...

for Buenos Aires Province on the

Justicialist Party The Justicialist Party (, ; abbr. PJ) is a major political party in Argentina, and the largest branch within Peronism. Following the 2023 presidential election, it has been the largest party in the opposition against President Javier Milei. Fo ...

ticket. Solá returned to the post of Secretary of Agriculture under Menem in 1993, remaining in the post until 1998. His tenure is best known for his controversial 1996 decision to allow the cultivation of GMO

soy The soybean, soy bean, or soya bean (''Glycine max'') is a species of legume native to East Asia, widely grown for its edible bean. Soy is a staple crop, the world's most grown legume, and an important animal feed. Soy is a key source of f ...

in Argentina, authorized a mere 81 days after

Monsanto The Monsanto Company () was an American agrochemical and agricultural biotechnology corporation founded in 1901 and headquartered in Creve Coeur, Missouri. Monsanto's best-known product is Roundup, a glyphosate-based herbicide, developed ...

applied for a permit.

Governor of Buenos Aires

On 10 December 1999, he became Vice Governor of Buenos Aires under Carlos Ruckauf, and took up the governorship on 3 January 2002, when Ruckauf resigned to become Foreign Affairs Minister for interim President

Eduardo Duhalde Eduardo Alberto Duhalde (; born 5 October 1941) is an Argentina, Argentine former peronist politician who served as the interim President of Argentina from January 2002 to May 2003. He also served as Vice President of Argentina, Vice President ...

after the socioeconomic collapse of 2001. Solá abandoned his political allegiance to Duhalde after President

Néstor Kirchner Néstor Carlos Kirchner Ostoić (; 25 February 195027 October 2010) was an Argentine lawyer and politician who served as the president of Argentina from 2003 to 2007. A member of the Justicialist Party, he previously served as Governor of Sa ...

did likewise, aligning with Kirchner's

expansionist Expansionism refers to states obtaining greater territory through military empire-building or colonialism. In the classical age of conquest moral justification for territorial expansion at the direct expense of another established polity (who ...

policies. As governor and amid 9% economic growth, his support for Kirchnerist candidates in his province during the campaign for the 2005 legislative elections helped result for a landslide win over Duhalde's faction and other parties. He successfully headed Kirchner's Front for Victory party list for his province's congressional candidates in

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

, stepped down as governor and returned to Congress.

Legislative terms

Having been rejected as running mate for 2007 Front for Victory presidential nominee

Cristina Fernández de Kirchner Cristina Elisabet Fernández de Kirchner (; born 19 February 1953), often referred to by her initials CFK, is an Argentine lawyer and former politician who served as the 56th president of Argentina from 2007 to 2015, and later as the 37th Vice ...

, Solá became estranged from Kirchnerism during the 2008 Argentine government conflict with the agricultural sector and left their caucus to become a dissident Peronist. Ahead of the 2009 mid-term elections, he joined Francisco de Narváez and

Mauricio Macri Mauricio Macri (; born 8 February 1959) is an Argentine businessman and politician who served as President of Argentina from 2015 to 2019. He has been the leader of the Republican Proposal (PRO) party since its founding in 2005. He previously ...

in Unión PRO, a center-right coalition of fellow dissident Peronists and the

Republican Proposal Republican Proposal (), usually referred to by its abbreviation PRO, is a political party in Argentina. PRO was formed as an electoral alliance in 2005, but was transformed into a national party in 2010. It is the major component of the Juntos ...

(PRO) party. Solá became a primary candidate in August 2009 for president ahead of the 2011 elections; but lacking support, he withdrew on 11 June and endorsed Duhalde's Popular Union ticket, which went on to fifth place. He later joined the Renewal Front, a centrist Peronist faction created by Sergio Massa ahead of the 2013 mid-term elections. Like Solá, Massa had broken with President Cristina Kirchner after the 2008 agro-export tax hike dispute, and the Renewal Front bested Kirchner's Front for Victory in Buenos Aires Province in 2013. Solá ran for Governor of Buenos Aires Province in

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

on the Renewal Front-led

United for a New Alternative United for a New Alternative () was an Argentine Peronist political coalition, running for the 2015 Argentine general election Fifteen or 15 may refer to: *15 (number) *one of the years 15 BC, AD 15, 1915, 2015 Music * Fifteen (band), ...

ticket; but placed third (21%). He then headed Massa's Buenos Aires Province party list for the 2017 mid-term elections, dubbed '' 1País'', but again placed third (11%). He broke with the Renewal Front and on 22 October 2018, joined four fellow Renewal Front congressmen and four allies to create '' Red por Argentina'' (RxA; "Network for Argentina"). Amid a worsening economic crisis Solá stated that his goal was to promote unity against the Mauricio Macri administration for the

2019 elections The following elections were scheduled to occur in 2019. The International Foundation for Electoral Systems has a calendar of upcoming elections around the world, and the National Democratic Institute also maintains a calendar of elections in cou ...

. The member parties of ''Red por Argentina'' would later join the broader

Frente de Todos The Frente de Todos (translated as "Everyone's Front") was a centre-left political coalition of political parties in Argentina formed to support President Alberto Fernández and Vice President Cristina Kirchner. Fernández won the 2019 gen ...

coalition.

Appointment as foreign minister

On 6 December 2019, it was announced Solá would be the next Minister of Foreign Affairs and Worship of Argentina in the incoming cabinet of President

. He assumed office alongside the rest of the cabinet on 10 December 2019. Solá was replaced by Cabinet Chief Santiago Cafiero on 20 September 2021 as part of a cabinet reshuffle, following the government's poor showings in the 2021 legislative primary elections

References

External links

Official website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Worship
(in Spanish) , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Sola, Felipe 1950 births Living people Politicians from Buenos Aires Argentine people of Spanish descent University of Buenos Aires alumni Argentine academics Members of the Argentine Chamber of Deputies elected in Buenos Aires Province Argentine deputies 2017–2019 Argentine deputies 2015–2017 Argentine deputies 2013–2015 Argentine deputies 2011–2013 Argentine deputies 2009–2011 Argentine deputies 2007–2009 Alberto Fernández administration cabinet members Governors of Buenos Aires Province Vice governors of Buenos Aires Province Justicialist Party politicians Renewal Front politicians Foreign ministers of Argentina 20th-century Argentine politicians