Argentine President Javier Milei Renews Attacks on Brazilian President Lula
5 sources across 2 countries · Brazil · Argentina
Who reported this
- G1
- CNN Brasil
- Folha de S.Paulo
- Gazeta do Povo
- La Nacion
What the colours mean
- Left
- Centre-left
- Centre
- Centre-right
- Right
- A hatched block means the outlet is affiliated with, or controlled by, a state.
Political lean describes where an outlet sits within the politics of its own country. It is never a position on a single global scale.
Political lean is comparable inside one country and not across them, which is why the bar groups by country first. Publicly funded broadcasters are not marked as state-linked.
The owner of each outlet is listed as a matter of record, not as a judgement about the outlet.
Argentine President Javier Milei has renewed verbal attacks against Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, calling him a thief, a corrupt official, and a former prisoner. In an interview with La Nación, Milei asserted that Lula was not innocent of his previous convictions in the Lava Jato operation and claimed he was released only due to a procedural failure. Milei further accused Lula of interfering politically in Latin America by spreading socialist ideas and alleged, without providing evidence, that Brazil funded an anti Argentina campaign involving the Mexico, Spain, and the Democratic Party in the United States.
The diplomatic tension follows an event on July 25 in São Paulo, where Milei spoke at a convention for the PL party to launch the candidacy of Flávio Bolsonaro. During that event, Milei also referred to Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes as bald trash. In response to these insults, the Brazilian government summoned the Argentine ambassador in Brasília for explanations and recalled the Brazilian ambassador in Buenos Aires, Julio Bitelli, for consultations. While the Argentine foreign ministry previously expressed a desire to avoid conflict, reports indicate the Brazilian government may postpone the return of Ambassador Bitelli following the latest insults.
Reactions from the Brazilian government have varied. President Lula responded with irony, asking who Milei was. Vice President Geraldo Alckmin called the attacks lamentable and a disservice to Argentina, while Finance Minister Dario Durigan called Milei a clown. Conversely, Flávio Bolsonaro praised Milei, stating that the Argentine president attacked communism rather than Brazil. In separate interviews, Milei also defended Argentina's economic indicators against negative polls and criticized journalists, specifically targeting columnist Carlos Pagni.
How each side framed it
- Centre-left
- The coverage presented the event as part of a daily summary of controversial news and diplomatic friction.
- Centre
- The coverage focused on the diplomatic crisis and the specific insults exchanged between the leaders and their cabinets.
- Centre-right
- The reporting emphasized Milei's defense of his statements as truths and his broader critiques of the press and regional socialism.
Sources
- Centre CNN Brasil: Brazil should postpone return of ambassador after Milei offends Lula again
- Centre Folha de S.Paulo: Javier Milei makes new attacks on Lula and calls him a thief and corrupt
- Centre-left G1: Daily summary #2087: STF resumes work with controversial agenda; Milei attacks Lula again; AI essay 'humanizers' worry teachers
- Centre-right Gazeta do Povo: Milei accuses Lula of interfering in other countries and calls him a thief again
- Centre-right La Nacion: Milei defended the economic situation and relativized the polls: "We are not Switzerland, but we are better off"
- Centre-right La Nacion: New attack by Milei on Carlos Pagni, columnist for LA NACION: “He got nothing right”
100% of the statements in this article were traced back to the source articles listed above.