By Eduardo Baptista and Lucinda Elliott
RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - China's President Xi Jinping met with Argentine President Javier Milei on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit in Rio de Janeiro on Tuesday, Chinese state television CCTV reported.
It was the first meeting between the two leaders, marking an about-face in Milei's rhetoric about China, which included last year calling the Chinese government "murderers" and stating he would not negotiate with communists.
Milei is an admirer of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, who engineered a hawkish turn in U.S. foreign policy toward China during his first term in office.
But Milei has softened his stance since taking office, describing the world's second-largest economy as an interesting trade partner, with a visit to China tentatively scheduled for early next year.
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.
"Under the leadership of Mr. President, your country is vigorously promoting reforms and is committed to economic recovery and national revitalization," he said.
Milei won the presidential election in November 2023 with a mandate to reshape South America's second-largest economy, pledging to take a chainsaw to government spending and slam the brakes on printing more pesos which he blames for the country's worst economic crisis in decades.
"China supports Argentina in pursuing a path of development that is in line with its national conditions, and we wish the reforms success," Xi added.
Milei recently replaced his foreign minister, Diana Mondino, who had been credited with easing diplomatic relations with the country's biggest trade partners Brazil and China following incendiary comments from the president.
Mondino's replacement, Gerardo Werthein, who had been serving as Argentina's ambassador to the U.S, did not respond to an earlier request for comment on the Xi meeting.
'High-Value Projects'
Li Xing, a professor at the Guangdong Institute for International Strategies, said the meeting's friendly tone was not surprising, given China's interest in expanding its influence in Latin America, as well as Milei's need to strengthen trade ties with countries, amid a rise in protectionist policies around the world.
"I think Milei will visit China every year. He needs Chinese investment for infrastructure projects in Argentina that currently lack funds," Li said.
As part of Milei's steep spending cuts to rebalance the state purse, the government has halted most public infrastructure works around the country.
Li noted that China's strategic partnership with Buenos Aires had already given it a foothold in one of the world's top exporters of soy, corn and wheat, including a Chinese military-run space observation station that has raised U.S. concerns.
"China has a lot of high-value projects in Argentina, like the Chinese space observation centre in the country's south that really angered the United States, who put pressure on Argentina to cancel it but until now they haven't," Li said.
From China's perspective, Li said, having Argentina as a reliable source of beef is strategically valuable as it gives Beijing leverage to pressure Australia, another beef exporter, in the event political ties with Canberra again become tense.
Xi said during the meeting with Milei that as both countries celebrate a decade of comprehensive strategic partnership, their relationship was at an important juncture, adding that China "treasured the traditional friendship between the two peoples."
"I am willing to work with you to grasp and lead the direction of the development of China-Argentina relations, promote the long-term and stable development of the China-Argentina comprehensive strategic partnership," he said.
(Reporting by Eduardo Baptista in Rio de Janeiro and Lucinda Elliott in Montevideo; Editing by Andrew Heavens and Bill Berkrot)
