Appearance in Madrid: Miley sparks a diplomatic crisis

The government in Madrid said on Sunday that Miley had “insulted Spain” as well as Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez. Right-wing populist Miley, who was in Madrid on Sunday to attend a meeting of far-right and right-wing populist parties, had previously described the wife of Spanish socialist Prime Minister Sanchez as “corrupt.” Foreign Minister Albarez said that if Miley did not apologise, the Spanish government “will take all the measures it deems appropriate to defend our sovereignty.”

A far-right group had filed a complaint against Sanchez's wife because of her alleged ties to companies that receive government aid. Sánchez then threatened to resign and complained about the major campaign being waged by conservatives and the far right against his left-wing government.

Miley: Unite against “socialism.”

Miley was one of the speakers on Sunday at a meeting of right-wing populist and far-right parties in Madrid, who wanted to promote themselves ahead of the European Union elections in June. The Argentine called on European extremist nationalists to unite against “socialism.”

El Mundo newspaper and other media described the atmosphere at the Vistalegre Palace by saying that Miley was celebrated like a “rock star.” During the Argentine's performance, people repeatedly chanted “Freedom, freedom.” Vox party leader Santiago Abascal said: “Thank you very much, Javier Miley, for the terrorism that the left of the West has frightened.”

From Le Pen to Meloni to Orbán

According to Vox, 11,000 participants attended the event, where French right-wing populist Marine Le Pen also spoke. There were video messages of support from Hungary from Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who called on “patriots” to “occupy Brussels,” and from Italy from Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

Israeli Minister of Social Equality, Amichai Shekli, a party colleague of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, also attended. This represents a continuation of the strategy he has been pursuing in Europe for years of forming alliances with right-wing and right-wing populist politicians. It's getting worse since Spain's leftist government announced it would recognize a Palestinian state in May.

Sanchez: “Spain stands by what they hate”

Sanchez wrote on the X platform (Twitter) that the global far right is meeting in Madrid “because Spain stands for everything they hate: feminism, social justice, and the dignity of work.” Hundreds of people protested in central Madrid against the far-right meeting, many of them carrying banners reading “No to fascism.”

Since taking office, Miley has implemented a strict austerity program in Argentina, which is heavily indebted and plagued by economic problems, which has severely reduced the purchasing power of many Argentines and thus led to numerous protests. In Madrid, the far-right Vox party hailed his model as a model for Europe.