The leader of Vox, Santiago Abascal, has advanced that tonight he will hold an in-person meeting with the Argentine president, Javier Milei, and, when asked about Donald Trump's defeat in the midterm elections in the United States, he has recalled that it is something that happens "habitually" and that it already happened to them with Bill Clinton and George Bush. He has also emphasized that he is very focused on the elections of 29N in Spain as to devote too much attention to American politics.
Abascal made these statements on Onda Cero, in an interview collected by Europa Press, where he explained that Milei returns to Spain tonight and that he will have "a meeting with him" after the rally that the Vox president holds this afternoon in Cuenca.
"This time it will not be by video call, so that they don't say we are emulating the Torrente movie. It will be in person," he said, before commenting that the previous day he already had the opportunity to meet with Colombia's vice president, José Manuel Restrepo, and to have a conversation with Abelardo de la Espriella, Colombia's president.
In his agenda for today, he added, there is also a lunch with Chile's president, José Antonio Kast. "All of us are also maintaining contact with our allies during these days," he underlined.
Abascal downplays the midterm elections in the US
Regarding the legislative elections in the United States, which Donald Trump's Republican party has lost, Abascal has indicated that he follows them with "quite a bit less interest than the national elections, frankly, as you can understand and for the sake of what brings me."
He has insisted that what happened in the United States is "something that happens habitually" and has recalled that it also happened to Bill Clinton and to George Bush. "Many presidents lose the majority in the chambers in the middle of their term," he said, before warning that the one who will continue at the head of the Presidency of the US for the next two years is Donald Trump and that "it is convenient to have a good relationship with the United States."
Despite this, he has reiterated that he is "quite busy with the national elections" as to be overly concerned about "any result of any other anywhere in the world".
Coincidences and differences with other international leaders
When asked whether, if he were to reach the Presidency of the Government, he wants to resemble figures such as Trump, Le Pen or Meloni, Abascal has responded that he does not aspire to imitate anyone and that, although he shares points in common with other international movements, there are also his own interests that create distance.
"In our agreement lies our greatest clash of interests," he has said, and then clarified that this agreement is based on "the defense of national sovereignty, of the borders, the national interest," principles that, he said, also inspire his allies in other countries.
However, he has stressed that this defense of the national interest often causes frictions with those same allies. As an example, he mentioned Javier Milei, a supporter of Mercosur, to whom he conveyed that Vox could not back that project because it "went against the interests" of Spanish farmers and ranchers. "And he said, oh, no drama, I understand perfectly," he has recounted.
In this vein, he has defended that what is essential is "to understand other political leaders who defend the interests of their nation". And he has concluded by criticizing the head of the Spanish Executive: "I don't understand those who defend others' interests, like the president of the Government, who is the Moroccan candidate."