Xi struck a friendly tone during their first meeting in Rio, thanking Milei for sending a "warm congratulatory letter" on the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China. He also noted Milei's sweeping economic reform plans, according to a readout published by CCTV.

Last year, then-presidential candidate Javier Milei declared Argentina would not “make deals with communists” in China or Brazil, calling their leaders “murderers” and “thieves” in a bid to channel the populist energies of Donald Trump and other global far-right icons into a winning political message.

President Javier Milei met his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the G20 Leaders' Summit in Rio de Janeiro on Tuesday, in what was their first face-to-face meeting. Milei, 53, published a photograph of the encounter on his social media accounts showing the two leaders shaking heads.