Argentina will move its embassy to Jerusalem next year, President Milei announces in Knesset

In his first address to the Israeli Parliament, the Knesset, Argentinian President Javier Milei announced that his country’s embassy would move to Jerusalem in 2026.

“In 2026, we will make effective the move of our embassy to the city of West Jerusalem,” Milei declared on Wednesday evening, which will fulfill a promise he made during his first visit to Israel last year.

The Argentine Embassy is currently located in Herzliya. While most countries with diplomatic ties to Israel maintain their embassies in Tel Aviv, and so far, only a handful – the United States, Guatemala, Honduras, Kosovo, Paraguay and Papua New Guinea – have relocated their embassies to Jerusalem.

Milei was welcomed in the Knesset by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, opposition leader Yair Lapid and Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana.

“Javier, you are a true friend. With this visit, we are bringing our relations to new heights. 12,000 kilometers separate Buenos Aires, Israel and the Knesset in Jerusalem,” Netanyahu said to Milei on the second day of his three-day state visit to the Jewish state.

The announcement of the president was met with standing ovations and shouts of “Viva Argentina!” and “Viva Israel!”

Milei began his remarks, which came against the background of furious last-minute negotiations to defuse the looming dissolution of the Knesset, by remembering the horrors of the Oct. 7, 2023, attack.

“The world witnessed great barbarity” on that day, Milei said. “We believed that we had finally put an end to this barbarity – the tragedy of October 7 woke us up from this dream.”

“Argentina stands by you in these difficult days,” he told the Members of Knesset. “Unfortunately, the same cannot be said about a large part of the international community that is being manipulated by terrorists and turning victims into perpetrators.”

Milei also praised the three miracles accomplished by the Jewish people and the State of Israel.

“The first miracle is the establishment of the State of Israel after the Holocaust, and the second is Israel’s survival after repeated attempts to destroy it,” he said.

The third miracle is “the agricultural revolution that made the desert bloom,” he continued. “You managed to grow food on land where nothing else grew.”

Lapid and Ohana responded by calling Milei “the best friend ever to the State of Israel and the Jewish people” in Argentina’s history. Since taking office, Milei has turned around the decades-long Argentinian policy of voting against Israel in the United Nations.

On Thursday morning according to Israel Hayom’s Ariel Kahana, Milei was received “like a rock star,” as he arrived at the Hebrew University to deliver a speech explaining the success of libertarian economic policies.

After the speech, the Argentinian leader briefly met and hugged the father of the murdered Israeli embassy staffer Yaron Lischinsky. Daniel Lischinsky was born and raised in the Argentine capital, Buenos Aires, before immigrating to Israel.

Later on Thursday, Milei was awarded the 2025 Genesis Prize in recognition of his support for Israel amid its growing international isolation, as well as for his plans for the “Isaac Accords.”

The award was presented by Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Genesis Prize Foundation Chairman Stan Polovets at the Museum of Tolerance in Jerusalem.

“Milei’s support is not only symbolic,” Polovets said. “His Isaac Accords vision is a geopolitical strategy that can bring tangible results in Latin America, from stronger bilateral ties to more votes for Israel at the UN.”

The plan was explained by Milei’s friend and ambassador to Israel, Rabbi Shimon Axel Wahnish, in a recent interview with The Jerusalem Post.

“If the Gulf can have the Abraham Accords, why can’t Latin America have the Isaac Accords?” he asked.

The proposed plan includes a framework for diplomatic recognition and a free trade compact between Israel and a bloc of Latin democracies with a similar outlook. It also envisions fast-track customs lanes, joint satellite launches, water technology hubs and specialized cyber training, Wahnish told the JPost.

“Paraguay is already on board. President Santiago Peña wants a signing, and Ecuador’s President, Daniel Noboa, has designated Hamas a terrorist group and is also considering joining,” he added.

Milei will dedicate the $1 million Genesis Prize to the establishment of a nonprofit organization advancing these plans.