Argentina proposes axis with Brazil and Mexico

Argentine President Alberto Fernández has proposed the creation of an axis between Mexico, Brazil and Argentina should former Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva return to power.

In a letter to President López Obrador, Fernández noted that AMLO, a fellow leftist, had recently spent time with the Argentine president’s “dear friend Lula,” another leftist who was president of Brazil from 2003 to 2010 and intends to run for president in the 2022 Brazilian general election, which will take place in October.

“He’s a great person and the best leader that South America has had and has. We should accompany him in every way we can,” Fernández wrote.

Argentina’s leader also said the election of Lula as president would benefit the “long-suffering people” of Brazil and allow the establishment of a Mexico-Brazil-Argentina, or MBA, axis, which could promote policies aimed at improving democracy in Latin America and distributing wealth in a more equitable way.

“We must never forget that we live in the world’s most unequal continent,” Fernández wrote.

In a gushing letter that López Obrador posted to his Twitter account on Sunday, Fernández also said that he had thought that capitalism would be “revised” as a result of the coronavirus pandemic and that “social ethics sullied by the greed of the powerful” would be recovered.

“I was wrong. After the pandemic, we didn’t manage to improve ourselves. … I believe, dear Andrés Manuel, that we must join forces to change this shocking reality,” he wrote.

Fernández also referred to the recent visit to Argentina by López Obrador’s wife Beatriz Gutiérrez Müller in glowing terms and invited his counterpart to make the trip south as well.

“I told Beatriz that I want to welcome you in Argentina. I know that you’re not keen on leaving Mexico. But you should make an exception just to brighten the life of someone who is fond of you, respects you and admires you: that’s me,” he wrote.

López Obrador described the letter as a “beautiful, authentic and fraternal political proclamation.”

Fernández, who has led Argentina since late 2019, has an affectionate relationship with AMLO, and even appeared via video link at one of his friend’s morning press conferences.

Regresé de mi gira por Chiapas y Tabasco al mismo tiempo que llegó Beatriz, quien me representó en Chile y Argentina. Mi amigo Alberto Fernández dio respuesta a mi carta con una bella, auténtica y fraterna proclama política. La comparto. pic.twitter.com/IMAKEhPJSp

— Andrés Manuel (@lopezobrador_) March 14, 2022

On Sunday, President López Obrador posted a gushing letter from Argentine President Alberto Fernández.

Lula, who spent almost two years in prison after being convicted on corruption charges in 2017, was in Mexico City earlier this month.

“Great meeting this morning with President López Obrador. We spoke about social justice, combating hunger, the brotherhood of Latin America and the need for peace in our world,” the former president tweeted on March 2.

With reports from Reforma and El Universal