Argentina’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that Brazil recalled its ambassador from Buenos Aires following insults directed at the Brazilian leader.
The diplomatic disputes last week came after Argentina’s leader, Javier Milei, claimed his Brazilian counterpart,, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, a “thief,” adding that he was also “corrupt; he has been convicted of theft and corruption; he has been in prison; so it is true that we can call him a convict.”
The Argentine president’s speech to the LN+ television channel also contained criticism of a Brazilian Supreme Court judge, prompting Brazil to recall its ambassador to Argentina for consultations regarding Milei’s remarks.
“Don’t you think it’s aggressive when someone steals from you? Calling a thief a ‘thief’ is far less serious than the act of stealing itself. They released him because of an administrative error, not because he is innocent. Therefore, he is a thief and a corrupt official,” he said on Sunday.
Thus, relations between the two neighbouring countries became strained, leading to the Brazilian government later stating that it was reducing “bilateral diplomatic representation to the level of Charge d’Affaires,” according to the Argentina’s Foreign Ministry statement.
“Argentina takes note of the unilateral decision adopted by the Government of Brazil and regrets its decision to continue isolating itself from the rest of the region for purely ideological reasons,” the ministry said.
Although unrest remains at a fairly high level, Argentina later attempted to play down the aftermath, stating it was a matter of “ideological and political differences.” Nevertheless, tensions are fuelled by Argentina’s president officially backing opposition forces in Brazil, in particular Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, who also enjoys support from the US and Israel.
These recent events mark a sharp deterioration in relations between Latin America’s two largest economies, whose presidents have not held any official bilateral meetings.
