MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Milei welcomes Bukele at Casa Rosada

Bukele arrived in Buenos Aires last Friday but his activities during the weekend remained under the utmost secrecy

Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele met Monday in Casa Rosada with his Argentine counterpart Javier Milei to discuss bilateral cooperation on issues such as “energy, trade, and security,” it was reported in Buenos Aires. During his stay in the Argentine capital, Bukele also held an encounter with Foreign Minister Diana Mondino and participated in other protocol engagements.

“I have the best impression in the world about Milei, I love what he does, we are friends and we will achieve good things for both countries,” he stressed. He also underlined that he liked what Milei's government was doing in the country.

Argentine Presidential Spokesman Manuel Adorni also posted on his Whatsapp channel that Bukele's technical teams were exchanging experiences and knowledge with Security Minister Patricia Bullrich, “who in only 9 months of management managed to lower the homicide rate 10.6% at national level and 60% in Rosario.” Bullrich held a separate encounter with her Salvadoran counterpart Gustavo Villatoro.

Milei and Bukele had last been together last week in New York during the United Nations General Assembly. The Libertarian leader had also attended Bukele's second inauguration on June 1. Days later, Bullrich visited Bukele to get a first-hand impression of the Central American country's fight against gang crime, including a visit to the Terrorism Confinement Center maximum security prison.

Bukele's successful hard-line security policy made him popular in his country for curbing the criminal activity that controlled parts of the territory. However, he has been heavily criticized for his alleged human rights violations.

After their private meeting on Monday, Milei and Bukele went out to greet each other from the Casa Rosada balcony.

Bukele arrived in Buenos Aires last Friday amid strict secrecy. His activities during the weekend were not disclosed. He is due in Congress Tuesday for meetings with Vice President Victoria Villarruel as Speaker of the Senate and with Lower House Speaker Martín Menem. He is also scheduled to visit Supreme Court Chief Justice Horacio Rosatti.