BERLIN: German Chancellor Olaf Scholz received Argentinian President Javier Milei in Berlin on Sunday for talks after their greeting that was accompanied by a small number of protesters.
The two leaders stopped for a brief photo opportunity, shaking hands in front of the government centre.
Several dozen demonstrators protested against the controversial Milei, who describes himself as an anarcho-capitalist. They stood by the Chancellery holding posters saying, "Away with Milei."
Milei was originally due to receive a full welcome with military honours, but this, alongside a joint press conference, was cancelled at short notice.
Instead, the two leaders were meeting for talks scheduled to last just one hour, reportedly at Milei's request.
The meeting between the two leaders is likely to focus primarily on economic issues. Argentina has large reserves of raw materials such as lithium that are urgently needed in Germany for the energy transition.
In addition, talks on a free trade agreement between the European Union and the South American economic organization Mercosur remain deadlocked.
Milei, who was elected with more than 55% of the vote in November's presidential elections, arrived in Germany on Saturday to receive a medal from the Friedrich August von Hayek Foundation in the northern port city of Hamburg.
He collected the award from the think tank - named after the Austrian pioneer of neo-liberalism - as hundreds of protesters demonstrated outside the venue against his invitation.
Around 200 supporters attended the ceremony, including notable right-wing German politicians such as Beatrix von Storch, a lawmaker from the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.
Only a handful of global leaders have received Milei since he took office, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Italy's Giorgia Meloni, El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele and Pope Francis.
Milei skipped traditional early visits to Argentina's neighbours Brazil and Chile due to wide ideological differences. He has visited the United States a number of times without receiving an invitation to the White House, instead meeting with Tesla chief Elon Musk and former President Donald Trump.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz urged Argentinian President Javier Milei to employ socially acceptable policies as he implements radical economic reform, Scholz's official spokesman,Steffen Hebestreit, reported. Scholz had stressed that social cohesion needed to be protected during the talks in Berlin on Sunday, which lasted 60 minutes as planned, Hebestreit said. — dpa
Oman Observer is now on the WhatsApp channel. Click here
