President Javier Milei of Argentina has praised United States president-elect Donald Trump for his doggedness and resilience in pursuing his political goals.
Both Trump and Milei met at a gala at Mar-a-Lago on Thursday night in the United States.
During the meeting, Trump said it was an “honour” to meet Argentina’s President Javier Milei in Florida ahead of a conservative investment summit. The right-wing leader is the first foreign leader to meet Trump since his US presidential election victory on 5 November.
At a gala at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort on Thursday, Milei congratulated the president-elect and said it proved “that the forces of heaven [were] on our side”.
Milei is expected to attend the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) Investor Summit on Friday.
Addressing the America First Policy Institute gala that evening, the Argentinian leader said “the winds of freedom [were] blowing much stronger” since Trump’s victory.
Speaking in English and Spanish, the self-described “anarcho-capitalist” criticised unfair tax systems that caused “the redistribution of wealth at gunpoint”. He also praised Elon Musk, the billionaire businessman who will run Trump’s new Department of Government Efficiency, claiming his social media site X was helping to “save humanity.”
Argentina’s president first met Trump at the annual CPAC in February – where he rushed to Trump backstage, shouting “president!”, and gave him a hug before they posed for pictures.
Following Milei’s speech on Thursday, Trump said it was an “honour” to welcome him to Mar-a-Lago – calling him “a MAGA person”.
“The job you’ve done is incredible.
“Make Argentina Great Again… he’s doing that.”
Argentinian media previously reported that Milei would be seeking a free trade agreement with the United States once Trump took office.
“The elected [Trump] government feels much more comfortable working with me than with other governments, and that has commercial and financial implications,” Milei said, according to La Nación.
CPAC claims to be the biggest annual gathering of conservatives in the US and describes itself as the oldest conservative grassroots organisation in the United States with a mission to “preserve and protect the values of life, liberty, and property for every American”.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage and former Prime Minister Liz Truss were among the speakers at the annual CPAC in February.
The Republican party won full control of the US government in the election earlier this month – something last achieved at the start of Trump’s first term in 2017.
