Spain Pulls Ambassador Over Argentine President’s Criticism of Prime Minister’s Wife

Controversial hard-right Argentine President Javier Milei came to Spain the end of last week for his first official state visit since winning a surprise victory in November 2023.

Milei came to office on promises of radical economic reform for the South American nation. At the time of his election the inflation rate in his country was 142% and the national debt of $323 billion amounted to 90% of Argentina’s total Gross Domestic Product (GDP). In his short time in office, he has pushed through multiple economic reforms in the country, some by edict and some via the national legislature. They included slashing the value of the Argentine peso by 50%, elimination of many government agencies which Milei considers unnecessary, widespread economic deregulation in the hopes a freer economy might grow and stabilize faster than the previous one, and greatly reducing the power of unions.

Milei was also actively working to deal with ongoing corruption at the highest ranks of government and business, and constant interference in the country’s business by the world’s biggest global powers.

Milei’s radical opinions and campaign style, which included carrying around a chainsaw to his many campaign stops, drew fire both within and outside his country.

Among those Milei alienated quickly internationally was Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, who declared publicly last fall he felt Milei’s policies would damage Argentina far more. The Spanish prime minister publicly endorsed Milei’s left-wing opponent in last fall’s election race, triggering angry reactions in public from Milei.

Last week’s trip to Spain should have provided an opportunity to mend fences between the leader of the second-largest economy in South America and the fourth-largest one in Europe. Spain is especially important to Argentina financially as it is second only to the United States in total investments made by its companies with a presence there. Spanish companies injected $152 million (€ 140 million) in business expansions and startups in 2022.

Besides the business ties, approximately 495,000 Spaniards live in Argentina and 97,000 Argentinians live in Spain. That data comes from the Spanish government.

The economic and human connections are just two reasons the two leaders should have a vested interest in getting along, despite the criticisms Sánchez made about Milei during the past election season. But when Milei showed up, he proved once again he has little interest in the diplomatic niceties global leaders normally demonstrate in public forums.

Things began badly enough when during his visit Milei not only ignored President Sánchez himself but also all other high officials in the Spanish government.

He instead used his visit to speak at the far-right VIVA24 political rally happening in Madrid on May 19.

In his address, Milei vehemently defended the tough economic decisions he had already made in Argentina, despite criticisms from Sánchez and others from afar during that time. He also gave a strong endorsement of free market capitalism and attempted to rally support for those policies from the Spanish citizens and politicians who attended.

If that were not unforgiveable enough for a politician from across the world, Milei then took aim at Begoña Gómez, the wife of the Spanish president.

Gómez had been accused some months ago by Manos Limpias (Clean Hands), a right-wing anti-corruption organization, of multiple charges of corruption and influence-peddling. The charges were serious enough that for some time it was rumored Sánchez might be forced to resign, if the claims of corruption could be substantiated. Eventually the charges were dropped after Spanish prosecutors said there was insufficient proof to justify a trial, though this was only recently, and wounds are still very much open for the Sánchez administration because of this.

In his speech Sunday, Milei chose to poke at those wounds before a crowd with many still believing Gómez was guilty as charged.

“The global elites don’t realize how destructive it can be to implement the ideas of socialism,” Milei said to the right-wing audience at VIVA 24, making a clear but deliberately oblique reference to the policies of Spanish Prime Minister Sánchez, polices Milei strongly opposes.

Then Milei fired an even more sarcastic shot at Sánchez, this time making a dig at the five day break the Spanish prime minister took when the influence-peddling scandal involving his wife was exposed.

 “Even if you have a corrupt wife, let’s say, it gets dirty, and you take five days to think about it,” the Argentine president said.

In that speech, Milei echoed the past allegations of Gómez as he referred to her as “cursed and carcinogenic.”

As expected, Sánchez demanded an immediate retraction of those statements from Milei, along with a public apology. He refused.

Not long after that Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares announced he was bringing his country’s ambassador to Argentina back to Spain, and that the removal was permanent.

Speaking to reporters as he broke the news, Albares expressed shock that Milei would dare use a state visit to attack Spain’s policies and verbally attack Sánchez’s wife.

“Argentina will continue without an ambassador,” Albares said, effectively making Argentina a pariah state as far as Spain is concerned.

“We are facing a unique case, not only unique for this government, but unique in the history of international relations,” the Spanish foreign minister continued. “There is no precedent for a head of state going to the capital of another country to insult its institutions.”

When asked by the Argentinian news source La Nación about Spain pulling its ambassador and the other statements Albares made, Milei blasted the decision as “nonsense typical of an arrogant socialist.”

“Socialists are capable of doing anything,” he continued.

As to the question of whether he would respond in kind and call back his country’s ambassador to Spain, Milei told reporters that “I am not going to be such an idiot.”