Argentina snubs G20 summit launch of Brazil's global anti-hunger alliance

Argentina was the only G20 country not to sign up to a global anti-hunger initiative set to be launched at the opening of a G20 summit in Rio, host Brazil said Monday

The decision by Argentina – led by President Javier Milei – deepens a political gap between the nation and neighbouring Brazil, whose left-wing President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is championing the Global Alliance Against Hunger and Poverty.

A total of 81 countries signed on to the flagship initiative – including 18 of the 19 nations in the G20 – but Argentina was not among them, according to a communiqué.

Its membership is "under negotiation," a source in the Brazilian Presidency told the AFP news agency.

The Global Alliance is an ambitious initiative pushed by Lula, a former steel-worker. It aims to eradicate hunger and poverty by 2030 and reduce inequality.

Milei and Lula, whose countries share a border, have had a tense relationship even prior to the Argentine's election last year. 

An ally of US president-elect Donald Trump, Milei has imposed radical austerity measures in Argentina to bring down high inflation.

The policies sent the poverty rate in the country soaring to 52.9 percent in the first half of this year, 11 percentage points higher than in the previous six-month period.

Milei was the first world leader to see Trump after the Republican's win in the US presidential election. He attended a gala at the Republican's Mar-a-Lago Florida estate last Thursday.

The Argentine leader has several times labeled Lula a "communist" and "corrupt."

The Global Alliance Against Hunger and Poverty also has the support of international organizations such as the European Union and the African Union – both G20 members – as well as financial institutions and NGOs, bringing the total number of signatories to 147. 

The initiative's goal is ambitious: to reduce world hunger, which affected 733 million people last year – nine percent of the global population – according to the UN.

For Lula, who grew up in poverty before a trade unionist and eventually president of Latin America's biggest economy, the initiative is dear to his heart.

At a national level, his left-wing policies have already lifted millions of Brazilians out of poverty. 

– TIMES/AFP