Argentina’s President Javier Milei renews his public criticism of Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, extending a diplomatic spat that began last week after Milei made accusations that Lula is a criminal. In a recent interview, Milei repeats his characterization of Lula, saying he is a “thief” and “corrupt,” and arguing that because Lula has been convicted for corruption-related charges, including theft and corruption, “we can call him a convict.” Milei also links his remarks to Lula’s time in prison, citing that Lula spent 580 days incarcerated. The exchanges come after Milei visited Brazil last weekend where he publicly backed Flávio Bolsonaro, an opponent of Lula ahead of Brazil’s upcoming presidential election. Together, the reports describe Milei doubling down on the same claims and continuing to voice them in the context of Brazil’s election landscape, while the two countries remain in an ongoing dispute sparked by the earlier comments.