Argentinian President Javier Milei, the first foreign leader to meet with President-elect Donald Trump following his election, is expected to attend his inauguration next month, according to news reports from his country.
Milei's office confirmed this weekend that he will come to Washington, D.C., for the ceremonies, reports Semafor, quoting Argentine newspaper La NaciĆ³n.
Milei is a staunch supporter of Trump and attended his victory party at Mar-a-Lago after the election in November.
He reportedly was hesitant to attend the inauguration, but accepted the invitation after Trump called him personally, reports Semafor.
Monday, Milei posted a link on X to the Semafor article, along with a photo of himself shaking hands with Trump.
He commented "Make Argentina Great Again, Make America Great Again" on the post, along with the word MAGA and emojis of the U.S. and Argentinian flags separated by a handshake.
Trump has invited several other foreign leaders to attend his swearing-in on Jan. 20, including Chinese President Xi Jinping, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
If Milei makes the trip to Washington, D.C., it would be the first time a foreign leader attended the ceremonies in person, according to State Department records dating to 1874. Typically, nations are represented by their ambassadors and spouses instead.
Trump spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said last week that the invitations to world leaders are an "example of President Trump creating an open dialogue with leaders of countries that are not just allies but our adversaries and our competitors, too," reports the Washington Examiner.
Trump publicly suggested inviting foreign leaders last Thursday after he rang the bell to open the New York Stock Exchange.
He told the press that he was "thinking about inviting certain people to the inauguration," which was met with concerns that inviting heads of state could pose security concerns.
"Maybe it is. We'll see what happens, but we like to take little chances," he responded.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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