MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Milei and Peña get together in Asunción instead of going to Honduras

Milei said he shared with Peña “the love for the ideas of Freedom”

Presidents Javier Milei of Argentina and Santiago Peña of Paraguay met Wednesday in Asunción to stress their shared commitment to economic freedom and deregulation as a path to prosperity. Their encounter took place at the same time most other heads of State convened in Tegucigalpa (Honduras) for the Celac Summit.

Milei praised Paraguay's economic success over the past two decades, citing its growth, inflation control, and appeal to global investors. Both countries “will be an example for all of South America,” Milei noted.

Paraguay “has diligently applied the ideas of economic freedom, as a result it has overcome inflation, it has not stopped growing for more than 20 years and thanks to this it attracts investors and residents from all over the world,” Milei said while highlighting Argentina's recovery from a severe crisis under similar principles, avoiding hyperinflation.

“Both President Peña and I know that the road to prosperity is none other than deregulation and fiscal surplus, and that the common good is reached through the ideas of freedom,” Milei also pointed out.

“We are building a bilateral relationship that brings our countries closer and that, eventually, will be transferred to the rest of the region,” he added. “Thus, a continent that for too long has suffered in so many places the onslaught of populism can once and for all move forward.”

“There are no extravagant formulas, but the conviction that freedom is the only possible path. Therefore, I see with hope a future of collaboration between our nations,” he insisted.

Amid a Southern Common Market (Mercosur) crisis triggered by US President Donald Trump's tariff policies, Milei, holding the bloc's pro tempore presidency, positioned Argentina and Paraguay as regional examples against populism and fiscal deficits.

Peña reinforced the deepening of political, commercial, and cultural ties, expressing optimism for both nations' economic futures. In his first official trip to Paraguay since taking office, Milei underscored the two countries' ideological alignment and plans for collaboration ahead of the upcoming Mercosur summit.

During his speech, Peña highlighted his ideological affinity and shared commitment to economic discipline that guides their respective administrations.

“We have deepened and reaffirmed our political, commercial, and cultural integration ties, which are fundamental, both for the population of Argentines in Paraguay and Paraguayans in Argentina,” Peña stressed.