By Lisandra Paraguassu
SAO PAULO, July 26 (Reuters) – Brazil has recalled its ambassador to Buenos Aires after Argentine President Javier Milei used a trip to the country to criticize its leaders and judiciary, two sources familiar with the matter said on Sunday.
In his second visit to the country, Milei arrived in Brazil on Friday to throw his weight behind Senator Flavio Bolsonaro’s presidential run. The eldest son of former President Jair Bolsonaro on Saturday officially launched his bid to unseat Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who has been extending his lead ahead of October´s elections.
Speaking alongside Bolsonaro in Sao Paulo, Milei called Lula a “convict,” labeled the Brazilian government “thieving socialists,” and championed the conservative candidate as the only one who can “stop Lula.”
The decision to recall Brazilian envoy Julio Bitelli was made on Sunday morning after Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira consulted with Lula, sources familiar with the matter said. The Brazilian government viewed Milei’s remarks as a “direct affront,” one source said.
The two countries have a virtually non-existent diplomatic relationship. Milei has not sought an official meeting with Lula on either trip to Brazil, nor has the Brazilian leader shown any interest in hosting him.
(Reporting by Lisandra Paraguassu, editing by Deepa Babington)
