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Date Published: 21/05/2024

Spain recalls ambassador to Argentina over political row

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The two Spanish-speaking countries are embroiled in escalating tensions that have their origin in political differences

Spain recalls ambassador to Argentina over political row

Spain will “definitively” withdraw its ambassador to Argentina after right-wing rabble rouser President Javier Milei refused to apologise for calling Socialist Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s wife “corrupt,” Spain’s Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares announced this Tuesday May 21.

Spain had already withdrawn its ambassador to Buenos Aires over the weekend. Albares confirmed that the envoy “will remain definitively in Madrid” and that “Argentina will no longer have a Spanish ambassador”.

The diplomatic rift followed President Milei’s controversial remarks during a conference in Madrid organised by the far-right Vox party. Milei criticised socialism and made disparaging comments about Sánchez’s wife, Begoña Gómez.

“The global elites don’t realise how destructive it can be to implement the ideas of socialism,” Milei said. “They don't know the type of society and country that can produce, the type of people clinging to power and the level of abuse that generates.”

He further added, “When you have a corrupt wife, let’s say, it gets dirty, and you take five days to think about it.”

The Prime Minister and President of the Spanish Government, Pedro Sánchez, had recently threatened to resign after a preliminary corruption investigation involving his wife, but that was quickly closed. In response to Milei’s remarks, Spain recalled its ambassador within hours, and Albares condemned the visiting president’s “insult”.

Albares demanded a “public apology” from Milei and warned that Madrid might consider severing diplomatic ties. Sánchez also called on Milei to retract his comments.

The Argentine government dismissed Spain’s response as “flashy and impulsive threats” and insisted that it was Sánchez’s government that should apologise.

Meanwhile, the main opposition party in Spanish parliament, the conservative PP, The have accused Sánchez of turning the allegations against his wife into a “national and international crisis” and that he is choosing to hide behind the being offended rather than offer explanations to defend against the accusations.

President Milei, a self-declared “anarcho-capitalist”, won the elections last November with a promise to eliminate Argentina’s vast public debt. His austerity programme has led to significant cuts in public subsidies. However, Milei has also gained notoriety for his controversial, Trumpian statements.

The diplomatic tension between Spain and Argentina had been escalating for weeks before this incident. Last month, a Spanish minister suggested that Milei might be using drugs, further straining relations between the two countries.

Image: Archive

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