US antisemitism envoy calls Argentina’s Milei ‘model for the world’

Argentina has undergone a 180-degree shift from serving as a safe haven for Nazis after the Holocaust to becoming, under Milei, one of the staunchest supporters of Israel in the world.

By Etgar Lefkovits, JNS

Argentina’s president, Javier Milei, is a “model for the world” at a time of global antisemitism, Rabbi Yehuda Kaploun, the United States special envoy to monitor and combat antisemitism, said on Friday.

Kaploun spoke after a meeting between U.S. officials and the Argentine leader at the Casa Rosada in Buenos Aires; the South American country assumed the annual rotating presidency of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) on March 18.

“Honored to meet for a wide-ranging discussion with @JMilei—a true champion for Jewish communities in Argentina and globally,” Ambassador Kaploun tweeted on X. “As antisemitism surges globally, you are a model for the hemisphere and the world.”

Argentina has undergone a 180-degree shift from serving as a safe haven for Nazis after the Holocaust to becoming, under Milei, one of the staunchest supporters of Israel in the world.

An intergovernmental organization made up of more than 40 countries, the IHRA is most commonly known for its working definition of antisemitism, adopted a decade ago, which has become the gold standard for the oldest hatred and has since been adopted by more than 1,200 entities worldwide, including the U.S. State Department.

Plenary meetings are scheduled in Buenos Aires in June and November, each preceded by conferences on antisemitism and regional Holocaust education.

Earlier this month, Israeli Ambassador to the U.N. in Geneva Daniel Meron noted at a handover ceremony for the leadership of the intergovernmental organization that the hatred that spurred the Holocaust is not gone.