Argentine President Javier Milei, a
self-proclaimed "anarcho-capitalist", considers the State to be
"the enemy" and a "criminal association", according to a preview
of a recorded television interview to be aired on Mediaset's
Retequattro on Monday evening.
"Philosophically I am an anarcho-capitalist and therefore I feel
a deep contempt for the State," he told journalist and 'Quarta
Repubblica' host Nicola Porro.
"I think the State is the enemy, I think the State is a criminal
association," he added.
Milei was in Rome to meet Pope Francis, President of the
Republic Sergio Mattarella and Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
On his relations with the Argentine pontiff, Milei said that
"the point is, you evolve".
"One of the things I have realised recently is that the Pope is
the most important person in the whole of Argentina, he is the
leader of Catholics in the world," said Milei.
"As a result, I had to reconsider some positions and, from that
moment, we began to build a positive bond," he continued.
During his election campaign towards the end of last year, Milei
accused the pope of having "an affinity for murderous
communists" and said that he is "representative of evil on
Earth".
At the close of the campaign the presidential candidate's staff
also called for "the suspension of diplomatic relations with the
Holy See as long as a totalitarian spirit prevails in the
Church".
At the time, the Vatican and Pope Francis did not reply.
Milei's private audience with the pope on Monday morning lasted
an hour, an unusually long time for a papal audience also
considering that in this case simultaneous translation was not
required.
The meeting between the two leaders had "surprising aspects",
the Argentine undersecretary for Worship Francisco Sánchez said
afterwards.
"In the course of the audience, the president made many gestures
towards the Pope and the pope made many gestures towards the
head of state," he continued, added that the meeting had been
"very cordial".
"It took place with much pleasantness, with much friendship
between the two, and with a duration, more than an hour, that is
not generally granted to international delegations received by
the Pontiff.
'Everything went in a way that was far above standard and this
obviously left us extremely satisfied," concluded Sánchez.
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