US PRESIDENT Barack Obama faced protests as he flew to Argentina yesterday to bolster his right-wing counterpart and ally Mauricio Macri.

Encounter Memory Truth and Justice, a coalition of organisations opposed to the state visit, issued a declaration entitled Obama Out of Argentina.

It condemned the presence of the “head of the most powerful imperialist state on earth in our country” who is “responsible not only for the vast majority of the sufferings of our people but of the peoples of the world.”

The statement noted that Mr Obama’s visit coincided with the 40th anniversary of the 1976 US-backed military coup against Justicialist Party president Isabel Peron.

That coup paved the way for the seven-year “dirty war,” in which more than 13,000 people were murdered or disappeared. Many children of the victims were given to families who supported the new regime.

“This is therefore a provocation of the people which we cannot accept,” the coalition said.

Mr Obama has made no secret of his preference for Argentinian President Mauricio Macri over his left-wing Justicialist Party predecessor Cristina Fernandez.

“President Macri recognises that we’re in a new era and we have to look forward,” Mr Obama said before his trip.

Ms Fernandez refused to repay national debts to US-based “vulture funds” while supporting the wave of left-wing governments across the continent.

Those governments face a growing threat of regime change, with Washington leading the charge against Venezuela and others.

Mr Macri defeated Ms Fernandez’s successor Daniel Scioli in last November’s elections.