Argentina's President Javier Milei presents a menorah to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the Casa Rosada presidential palace in Buenos Aires, Argentina, December 10, 2023. Photo shared by Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via Portal
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky traveled to Buenos Aires to attend the swearing-in of new Argentine President Javier Milei on Sunday.
It is the Ukrainian leader's first trip to Latin America as Kiev continues to rally developing countries' support for its 21-month battle against Russian invading forces.
Milei welcomed Zelenskyy after his inauguration at the presidential palace. The two hugged each other extensively, exchanged words and then Milei, who had announced his intention to convert to Judaism, presented his Ukrainian counterpart with a menorah as a gift. They were expected to have a lengthy one-on-one meeting later Sunday.
A political outsider who railed against what he calls deep-rooted official corruption in Argentina and vowed to uproot the political establishment, Milei ran on a pro-Western foreign policy platform and repeatedly expressed his distrust of Moscow and Beijing.
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Zelensky called Milei shortly after the Argentine's election victory and thanked him for his “clear support for Ukraine,” which he described in social media posts as “well perceived and appreciated by Ukrainians.”
In the reading of the call released shortly afterward, Milei's office said he had offered to host a summit between Ukraine and Latin American nations, a potential boon to Kiev's months-long effort to strengthen its ties with countries of the Global South.
Zelensky and other senior Ukrainian officials have repeatedly portrayed Ukraine's war against Russia as a resistance to colonial aggression, hoping to win support from Asian, African and Latin American states that have historically struggled to free themselves from foreign rule. and sometimes turned to Moscow for support against Western powers.
Zelensky used the trip to Argentina to meet leaders of several developing countries. On the way to Buenos Aires he met the Prime Minister of the West African country of Cape Verde, Ulisses Correia e Silva. In Argentina, Zelensky met separately with the presidents of Paraguay, Ecuador and Uruguay, his office said.
“The support and strong common voice of Latin American countries that stand with the Ukrainian people in the war for our freedom and democracy are very important to us,” Zelensky said in a statement.
He also had a telephone conversation with French President Emmanuel Macron in which he discussed “the details of the French Republic's next defense package, which will significantly improve Ukraine's firepower, and our country's current defense needs,” Zelensky's office said.
In other developments:
Russian shelling in Ukraine's northeastern Kharkiv region killed two elderly women and injured two other civilians in the past 24 hours, local governor Oleh Syniehubov reported Sunday morning. In a Telegram update, Syniehubov said both women died in the same attack in the east of the province, where parts run close to the front line and heavy fighting has taken place in recent weeks.
In the southern Kherson region, Russian shelling killed one civilian and injured four others on Saturday and overnight, local governor Oleksandr Prokudin said on Telegram on Sunday.
Left: Argentina's President Javier Milei presents a menorah to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the Casa Rosada presidential palace in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on December 10, 2023. Photo shared by Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via Portal