Argentina’s new president has visited the Western Wall in Israel and pledged to move his nation’s embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
Javier Milei, who was elected in November, was embraced on the tarmac by Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz as he arrived in Israel on Tuesday.
The hard-right president portrays himself as a culture warrior shaking up the establishment and he is often compared to Donald Trump.
Mr Milei’s pledge to move the Argentine embassy to Jerusalem appeared to mirror Mr Trump’s actions.
Mr Trump defied worldwide warnings in 2017 and declared that he officially recognised Jerusalem as the Israeli capital in a historic break from international policy.
Mr Trump moved the US Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem in an act that was hailed by Israel but harshly criticised by the Palestinians.
Israel captured east Jerusalem, along with the West Bank and Gaza, in the 1967 Mideast war.
It annexed east Jerusalem shortly thereafter and now considers the entire city its unified capital.
The Palestinians seek an independent state in all three territories and view east Jerusalem as their capital.
Israel occupies the West Bank and has built scores of Jewish settlements there. It withdrew soldiers and settlers from Gaza in 2005 but along with Egypt imposed a blockade on the territory after Hamas seized power there two years later.
Most countries do not recognize Israel's claim to east Jerusalem and have their embassies in Tel Aviv.
The Argentine President appeared emotional as he visited the Western Wall in Jerusalem’s Old City, the holiest site, where Jewish people can pray.
He was pictured embracing Argentine Sephardic Orthodox rabbi Shimon Axel Wahnish next to the Western Wall.
