President Javier Milei harshly criticized Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva during an event in São Paulo on Saturday. Brazil responded by calling its ambassador in Buenos Aires for consultations.
Milei participated on Saturday in the launch of Flávio Bolsonaro's presidential candidacy in São Paulo. There he called Lula da Silva a thief and prisoner and accused Brazilian justice of preventing him from visiting Jair Bolsonaro.
Hours later, Brazil's Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned Argentine ambassador Daniel Raimondi to provide explanations for those statements. The Argentine government defended Milei's intervention and recalled Lula's 2025 visit to Cristina Kirchner.
Milei later accused the Brazilian government of financing a campaign against Argentina. He said that 25 percent of the resources for that campaign came from Brasília.
Governor Axel Kicillof and former president Alberto Fernández criticized Milei for his remarks. Kicillof stated that the president does not represent the feelings of the Argentine people.
