“President Milei spoke with the truth,” said Casa Rosada spokesperson Manuel Adorni yesterday, describing the Argentine president’s trip to Spain as “successful.” In his morning press conference, Adorni seemed “surprised” and claimed not to understand “the reason for his resentment” or the “flashy and impulsive threats” of the Spanish Foreign Minister, José Manuel Albares.
“The Argentine president did not mention anyone in particular,” he added, although he later said that, if “hypothetically” Milei had referred to Pedro Sánchez’s wife, it would be something minor compared to “the number of grievances” that the ultraliberal leader has received from the Spanish Government. And there Adorni made reference to the words of ministers Óscar Puente and Diana Morant, those of Vice President Yolanda Díaz, or those of Sánchez himself.
“Whoever fits into the tunic should wear it,” added the spokesperson, clarifying that this controversy “has nothing to do with diplomatic issues, it is a matter between people.” Adorni insisted that Milei “is not going to communicate” with Sánchez and that, on the contrary, he hopes that it will be the head of Moncloa who apologizes “publicly.”
Milei’s Sunday speech in Madrid was written, but the unquestionable reference to Sánchez’s “corrupt woman” was improvised. She “was talking and, when she mentioned ‘kind of people screwed to power’, it occurred to her to say what she said,” a source close to Milei told La Vanguardia yesterday from Buenos Aires.
Adorni also stated that he does not believe that this incident will affect Spanish investments in Argentina. In fact, he linked the “success” of the trip to the meeting that Milei held on Saturday in Madrid with the main Spanish companies and highlighted the presence of the president of the CEOE, Antonio Garamendi. The spokesman was less ironic, when the Spanish correspondents reminded him that Garamendi distanced himself from Milei’s outburst, after participating in a meeting which – with a precaution that has turned out to be providential – was no longer attended by the majority of company presidents, who sent to his second swords.
Spain is the second largest investor in Argentina, after the US. And yesterday, the local press was not lenient with Milei, not even La Nación, which is usually contemplative with the anarcho-capitalist leader, especially its television channel. In an article that started on the front page, the newspaper warned about the risks of “another bet on conflict and excess.” The conservative newspaper quoted – without identifying – a source close to former liberal president Mauricio Macri who expressed his concern. Macri’s party is a partner in the Government and its main parliamentary support. In another article, he recorded the $200,000 cost of Milei’s trip to Spain – who has popularized the slogan “there is no money” to justify his savage cuts –, with no other official activity than the meeting with the businessmen.
“We trust that once the electoral situations in Europe that motivate these actions have been overcome, we can redirect relations,” Adorni said, however. Milei’s words – and the Spanish overreaction – must be contextualized in the European elections. Without ignoring the doubts about Milei’s mental health, which make his movements unpredictable, the Argentine leader’s speech was written and designed to electorally favor the European extreme right and, especially, his “friend” Santiago Abascal, leader of Vox.
Milei feels like the great world leader of ultraliberalism and what better than to have as a rival the main progressive European leader, Pedro Sánchez, who also maintains an intransigent speech with the extreme right or with the bombings on Gaza by Israel, supported without fissures by an Argentine president who wants to convert to Judaism.
The president landed yesterday in Buenos Aires after spending the entire flight tweeting, retweeting and responding to messages of support from his ultra followers, Argentine and Spanish, several of whom asked him to travel more to Spain. Milei personally sent hundreds of messages during the flight and ordered his people not to take a step back from the controversy.
