Javier Milei launches $1 million campaign for an 'Abraham Accords of Latin America'

Argentinian President Javier Milei, a staunch supporter of Israel, has used the $1 million prize money granted to him by the Genesis Prize Foundation to launch an nonprofit organization aimed at strengthening relations between Israel and other Latin American countries, Al Jazeera reported on Wednesday.

Milei's initiative is modeled off the 2020 Abraham Accords, facilitated by the U.S., which saw normalization between some Arab countries and Israel, whose prime minister is reportedly set to visit Argentina in the near future.

Dubbed the "American Friends of the Isaac Accords" (AFOIA), the initiative reportedly seeks to "replicate the success of the Abraham Accords by strengthening diplomatic, economic and cultural cooperation," according to a statement from The Genesis Prize Foundation, an organization that annually honors personalities from the Jewish community.

“AFOIA is a vehicle to promote Milei’s bold vision and encourage other Latin American leaders to stand with Israel, confront antisemitism, and reject the ideologies of terror that threaten our shared values and freedoms,” Genesis Prize co-founder Stan Polovets said, as cited in the same press release.

Between 2017 and 2021, U.S. President Donald Trump brokered a series of diplomatic agreements, eventually known as the Abraham Accords, which paved the way for Arab states like Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates to establish official relations with Israel.

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The AFOIA will initially focus its efforts on three Latin American countries: Uruguay, Panama and Costa Rica, which are "ready to strengthen their cooperation with Israel," according to the Genesis Prize Foundation. "These nations stand to benefit significantly from Israeli expertise in water technology, agriculture, cyber defense, fintech, health, and energy," the organization claimed, with ambitions to extend its mission in the long term to Brazil, Colombia, Chile and potentially El Salvador by 2026.

However, Milei's project comes amid ever-mounting criticism of Israel and its devastating military operations in Gaza, in which it has killed more than 61,500 Palestinians since Oct. 7, 2023. Among Latin American countries, Colombia and Bolivia severed diplomatic ties back in 2023 and Brazil recently became the latest nation to join South Africa's International Court of Justice case against Israel.

Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, welcomed the creation of this framework and praised Milei, whom he called "an example for his regional neighbors." However, he acknowledged the opposition from several leading Latin American leaders to Israel.

“Given the hostility toward the Jewish state from some nations in the region, support of Israel by Latin American countries which are now on the sidelines is very important,” Danon said in the release.

In June, Milei stated his intention to move Argentina’s embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem by 2026. A Catholic, he has even said he intends to convert to Judaism. His selection as the 2025 Genesis Prize laureate is considered a first for a non-Jewish figure.