President-elect Donald Trump met with self-described “anarcho-capitalist,” Argentine President Javier Milei, during an event Thursday, Nov. 14. The meeting of the populist politicians was Trump’s first in-person meeting with a world leader since last week’s election.
The two spoke briefly at the America First Policy Institute gala at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida. The conversation happened shortly before both leaders took the stage.
The Argentine president was quick to congratulate his future U.S. counterpart on his decisive victory.
“Thank you for allowing me to be part of this major event and for giving me the opportunity to speak here among all of you,” Milei said through a translator. “You are true giants. First, I would like to begin by congratulating President-elect Donald Trump on his resounding victory. This has been the greatest political comeback in history, defying the entire political establishment, even at the risk of his own life.”
And it was mutual admiration at Thursday’s gala.
“Javier, I’d like to congratulate you and the job you’ve done for Argentina,” Trump said. “Your speech was beautiful, but the job you’ve done is incredible. Make Argentina great again, you know, MAGA, he’s a MAGA person.”
Trump and Milei publicly lauded each other over the last year. Trump congratulated Milei after he won his election by the highest percentage of votes in 40 years last November. At the time, he said he was “very proud” of Milei and claimed he would turn Argentina around.
🇺🇸🇦🇷 Donald Trump e Javier Milei se reúnem pela primeira vez durante evento de conservadores nos Estados Unidos. pic.twitter.com/atrvZaV8nQ
— Eixo Político (@eixopolitico) February 24, 2024
Thursday’s meeting wasn’t the first time the two have come into contact with each other. They met in February at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington D.C.
Milei and Trump are in apparent agreement on some international policy. The Argentine president is considering exiting the Paris Climate Agreement, something President-elect Trump vowed to do for a second time when he re-enters the Oval Office.
The evaluation of Argentina’s position on the Paris accords comes days after the country withdrew its negotiators from the COP29 summit in Baku, Azerbaijan.
