Clashes between protesters and police officers erupted in Buenos Aires on Thursday as Argentine retirees took to the streets to rally against President Javier Milei's veto of pension increases.

Protesters could be seen chanting slogans and carrying banners reading 'Hunger' and 'No to veto', before police used batons and pepper spray leaving several injured.

"There it goes national pride, they are very 'macho and are bold' to hit a retired woman or a retired man, this is what they will tell their grandchildren," one protester said.

"They do not have the slightest sense of so-called empathy, the retired people at this moment are in a situation... much lower than poverty," said Alberto, another protester. "For these criminals, do not kill us with sticks or hunger, please."

Protesters went on to urge Milei to 'negotiate with the people' rather than corporations or unions.

This week the president announced that he would veto in full a new formula to increase pensions after the upper house of Congress approved the new mechanism. Milei recently called lawmakers 'financial degenerates' and accused them of trying to destroy his economic austerity programme, which he says is needed to rebuild the country's finances.

Argentina's senate had planned to raise pensions by over 8 percent in order to compensate for inflation, and provide guarantees that the minimum pension would be enough to afford essential goods.