The President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, and the President of Argentina, Javier Milei, have shaken hands this Thursday during the XXX Ibero-American Summit, held in Madrid. The greeting took place in the Gallery of the Royal Collections, in the sight of the King Felipe VI and the Ibero-American Secretary General, Andrés Allamand, in an image that contrasts with the public confrontations that both leaders have driven in recent years.
The meeting comes after a stage of diplomatic tensions between Spain and Argentina, especially since May 2024, when Milei made some statements against Sánchez and his wife, Begoña Gómez, during a visit to Madrid. That controversy led the Spanish Government to withdraw its ambassador in Buenos Aires.
Despite the protocol greeting, political differences have once again become evident during the summit. Milei has maintained his criticisms of the Spanish executive, while Sánchez, asked about the words of the Argentine president at the subsequent press conference, has defended that presidents are “to unite” and that the insult does not form part of his way of understanding politics.
The photograph thus captures one of the most striking moments of a summit in which Spain has acted as host and which has brought together representatives from the 22 Ibero-American countries. A handshake between two politically opposed leaders, with Felipe VI as a witness, which does not, by itself, imply rapprochement between their respective governments.