[HIGHLIGHTS] When the fight between a vice president and a president complicated an Economy Minister

José Luis Machinea was Economy Minister in Fernando de la Rúa's government. Machinea asked the IMF for a financial shield to prevent Argentina from devaluing its currency.

The IMF gave Machinea a financial aid of almost US$40,000 million. The financial aid was part of a deal to keep Argentina's currency at parity with the U.S. dollar. The currency crisis of 2001 led to the devaluation of the Argentinian peso and the collapse of the 1 to 1 system.