Pope arrives in Argentina and tells Milei that people, should come first

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — Pope Leo XIV delivered a diplomatic but subtly strong critique of Argentine President Javier Milei’s austerity measures and libertarian agenda as he arrived Sunday…

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — Pope Leo XIV delivered a diplomatic but subtly strong critique of Argentine President Javier Milei’s austerity measures and libertarian agenda as he arrived Sunday in Argentina, insisting that political leaders must put people, not the economy, first.

Leo used his first public speech in Argentina to lay out a vision of governance, democracy and society sharply at odds with Milei’s, exposing differences over spending cuts, social justice and artificial intelligence that the government had sought to play down ahead of the visit. “The economy must serve the person, not the person the economy,” Leo told officials, diplomats and civic leaders upon his arrival in Buenos Aires from Uruguay.

Leo’s visit to Argentina is by far the most politically delicate of his three-nation South American tour, and a place where Leo will also confront the complicated legacy of Argentine Pope Francis, who never returned home during his 12-year pontificate. Milei, a self-described anarcho-capitalist, has staked his presidency on slashing public spending to tame inflation, while describing the notion of social justice as “a horror,” a “moral aberration” and “theft” in recent speeches.

Much like its allies in the Trump administration, Milei’s government has portrayed the cuts as part of a necessary reform process to remake Argentina’s troubled economy and eliminate fraud and waste in the federal bureaucracy. Ahead of Leo’s arrival in Argentina, the first by a pope in nearly 40 years, Milei’s officials had dismissed the prospect of a political clash.

“There’s no way the pope is coming here to comment on local politics,” Human Capital Minister Sandra Pettovello said in an interview with a Buenos Aires radio station last week. In a message welcoming Leo, Milei said he hoped the trip would “strengthen the faith, renew hope and bring a message of peace to all Argentines.” A call for civility in politics Leo took up that message of peace, opening with a call for gentler politics in deeply polarized Argentina.