Initially, both modern states of Argentina and Uruguay were part of the Spanish empire's Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata.

Despite being of French ancestry, Liniers rejected Joseph's rule and confirmed his allegiance to the captive king, but Javier de Elío did not trust him, and created a government Junta in Montevideo.

During the first century of Uruguayan independence, major events on both sides were linked to an international, two-party alliance/rivalry that constituted separate nationalized structures.

More unfiltered commentary from Uruguayan president José Mujica was aired during a meeting where he said that "with the Turk we were better but with this old lady there is no deal", making reference to Argentine leaders Carlos Menem and Cristina Kirchner[citation needed].

During a speech, Cristina Kirchner stated that "José Gervasio Artigas wanted to be Argentine and we did not let him"; this statement was discussed in Uruguay for some time[citation needed].

Following the announced construction of a pulp mill on the Uruguayan side of the Uruguay River by Spanish manufacturer ENCE in 2003, both countries experienced their first significant diplomatic tensions since 1952, when President Juan Perón attempted to curb Argentine offshore banking in the neighboring nation.

[2] The Pulp mill dispute between Argentina and Uruguay remains a subject of controversy, particularly after ongoing reports of growing water contamination in the area that was later identified to be sewage discharge from the actual town of Gualeguaychú.

In 2017, Argentina and Uruguay signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the implementation of the "Strengthening Connectivity" (Fortalecimiento de la Conectividad) project.

It aims to develop greater connectivity by creating fiber-optic links to interconnection points where international internet providers are located and to submarine cables that reach the Argentine coast.