(24 Jun 2024)
RESTRICTIONS SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Prague – 24 June 2024
1. Petr Pavel, President of Czech Republic, waiting for Javier Milei, President of Argentina
2. Pavel talking
3. Pavel and Milei going to join their delegations
4. Various of castle guard playing the anthem of Argentina
5. Pavel and Milei, castle guards
6. Pavel and Milei arriving to deliver joint statement
7. SOUNDBITE (Czech) Petr Pavel, President of Czech Republic:
"We agree that the restoration of democracy and a world order based on rules and respect for them, including territorial integrity and sovereignty, is not limited to the North, the South, the East, or the West. Of course, we have addressed our relations with each other in addition to global security."
8. National symbol of Czech Republic on podium
9. SOUNDBITE (Spanish) Javier Milei, President of Argentina:
"We together support (Ukraine) President (Volodymyr) Zelenskyy against the brutal Russian aggression, the importance of preserving the territorial integrity of Ukraine. And at the same time we agree that Israel has a right to defend itself against terrorism, I want to thank the Czech Republic for constantly being in favor of the Mercosur-European Union Agreement. During our meeting, I also appreciated President Pavel’s invaluable support in making Argentina a global partner of NATO."
10. Pavel and Milei shaking hands and leaving
STORYLINE:
Argentina’s self-described anarcho-capitalist President Javier Milei wrapped up his brief trip to three European Union countries by visiting the Czech Republic on Monday.
Milei met Czech leaders, including his counterpart, retired Gen. Petr Pavel and conservative Prime Minister Petr Fiala, and gave a speech at a conference on how to deal with an ineffective government.
High on the agenda was the two countries’ support for Ukraine, bilateral cooperation in business, technology, defense and other fields and a trade agreement between the European Union and the countries of the Latin American Mercosur trade bloc.
After their meeting, Milei and Pavel made only brief statements and didn’t take questions.
“We together support (Ukraine) President (Volodymyr) Zelenskyy against the brutal Russian aggression, and at the same time we agree that Israel has a right to defend itself against terrorism,” Milei said.
Pavel said he believed that Argentina will become in the future one of the global partners of NATO.
He highlighted the importance of a trade deal between the EU and Mercosur.
Milei, who is known for his unfiltered way of speaking, was elected last year on the promise to fix Argentina’s troubled economy.
His austerity measures have fueled waves of protests in the South American nation, with protesters saying cuts have put the poor even more at risk and have endangered public universities.
The Czech prime minister said after their meeting that they share similar views on key security issues, such as Ukraine.
The trip to Prague happened after a visit to Germany for a meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and followed a controversial trip to Spain, where Milei made no plans to meet with senior government officials, amid a diplomatic crisis engulfing the long-standing allies.
Milei was accompanied by Defense Minister Luis Alfonso Petri who signed a memorandum of understanding with his Czech counterpart Jana Černochová about cooperation in the defense industry.
Milei was applauded when he arrived for his speech at the Zofin palace in downtown Prague with several protesters gathered near the venue.
AP video by Stanislav Hodina
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