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Perfil

ARGENTINA | 06-12-2023 22:01

Javier Milei and Elon Musk speak by phone, agree to meet in 2024

Argentina’s president-elect speaks with Elon Musk, the owner of X and Tesla, after exchanging messages on social media; US businessman interested in business opportunities related to lithium industry and Starlink.

After a series of social interactions on social networking site X, Javier Milei shared a telephone conversation on Wednesday with South African-born billionaire Elon Musk, who "congratulated" him on his victory, the president-elect’s office said in a statement on Thursday.

"I thanked him for defending the ideas of freedom and supporting our work," Milei said in a post on his X account, the social network owned by Musk. 

Milei later told Perfil that Musk congratulated him on his election victory and expressed his support "for the ideas of freedom." With gratitude, the economist told him that his endorsement carried great symbolic weight across the globe.

The president-elect is due to take office as president on December 10 and he revealed that he had invited the Tesla owner to attend his inauguration.

"While he will not be able to attend the handover ceremony, we are in contact so that next year he can visit Argentina and we can continue to strengthen ties and work together," Milei added.

On Tuesday, Musk shared on X a video from 2017 that featured Milei. In it, the libertarian leader quoted Milton Friedman and John Stuart Mill and expressed that, from his point of view, "there is nothing more unjust than social justice."

"We need to talk, Elon," Milei responded via his official account.

The businessman predicted prosperity for Argentina back in November when Milei won the presidential run-off over ruling coalition candidate Sergio Massa. 

Musk has shared a number of posts about or that feature Milei, including the high-profile interview with Tucker Carlson that the Argentine recorded prior to the second-round vote.

There are a number of potential business opportunities for Musk in Argentina. Potential options include the expansion of Starlink, the company that offers satellite broadband service, and cooperation on lithium extraction.

Telsa recently began refining the battery metal in Texas. Lithium is an essential component of the batteries needed to power the firm's electric vehicles. 

Argentina is home to some of the world's largest lithium deposits, accounting for 21 percent of global reserves.

Argentine businessmen Martín Migoya, CEO of the technology company Globant, and Marcos Galperín, of Mercado Libre, are other businessmen who have expressed their support for Milei’s Presidency.


– TIMES/AFP

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