Argentine President Javier Milei (left) hugs former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro during CPAC Brasil 2024, a conservative event, in Balneário Camboriú, Santa Catarina state.Image: keystone
July 18, 2026, 8:45 p.mJuly 18, 2026, 8:45 p.m
Brazil’s judiciary has banned Argentine President Javier Milei from visiting former President Jair Bolsonaro while he is under house arrest. Judge Alexandre de Moraes rejected a corresponding request from the defense and referred to the visiting rules that had only been tightened the day before, as the news portal “G1” reported.
According to his lawyers, Bolsonaro wanted to receive Milei at his home in Brasília on July 25. Both are among the most prominent representatives of the political right in South America. The Argentine president had announced a trip to Brazil that day and wanted to meet Bolsonaro and support his son Flávio’s presidential candidacy.
Judge: Political visits prohibited
It was only on Friday that Moraes tightened the conditions for Bolsonaro’s house arrest. The judge banned the ex-president from making political-election-related visits until the end of the presidential election in October. He also prohibited the dissemination of political messages via third parties. Against this background, Moraes viewed the defense’s request for a meeting with Milei as “pointless”.
According to the court, the trigger for the stricter requirements was a handwritten letter from Bolsonaro that his son Flávio had published on social networks. In it, the ex-president spoke out in favor of his son running for president in the presidential election. The court considered this a violation of the conditions of his house arrest.
Incumbent Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is expected to run again in the presidential election and face Flávio Bolsonaro. His father was sentenced to more than 27 years in prison for an attempted coup and is currently serving the sentence under house arrest for health reasons. (sda/dpa)