MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Milei's presence in Paraguay triggers mixed reactions

The Argentine president was dubbed ”a puppet of the International Monetary Fund (IMF)” by protesters objecting to his presence

Argentine President Javier Milei landed in Asunción early Tuesday to participate in the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) and to hold a bilateral meeting with Paraguayan colleague Santiago Peña.

Milei's visit comes at a “delicate” time for his administration, which is grappling with a corruption scandal involving Presidential Secretary (and sister) Karina Milei, and a recent electoral defeat in the province of Buenos Aires, after which Governor Axel Kicillof was reported to have emerged as the leading opposition figure.

Milei is a keynote speaker at the conservative conference, which also features other prominent figures, including President Peña, US envoy Richard Grenell, Mexican actor Eduardo Verástegui, Paraguayan Lower House Speaker Raúl Latorre, and Asunción's Ambassador to Washington, Gustavo Leite.

This is Milei's second trip to Paraguay as President, his first being an unofficial visit in April. This time around, the Libertarian leader is also scheduled to address young entrepreneurs at the Paraguayan Industrial Entrepreneurs Forum, in addition to delivering a message to the Paraguayan Congress on Wednesday.

Milei's visit has been met with protests from student groups who oppose his policies, particularly after the Argentine judiciary has opened an investigation into the corruption allegations, which the government has tried to suppress by censoring the release of related audio recordings.