Unguarded Moment: Uruguay's President Calls Argentine Counterpart An 'Old Hag'

Uruguayan President Jose Mujica. i i

hide captionUruguayan President Jose Mujica.

Miguel Rojo /AFP/Getty Images
Uruguayan President Jose Mujica.

Uruguayan President Jose Mujica.

Miguel Rojo /AFP/Getty Images

Talk about an oops moment: Talking before the start of a press conference, when perhaps he thought the mics were off, Uruguay's President José Mujica called Argentina's President Cristina Fernández an "old hag" who is worst than her "one-eyed" late husband and former Argentine President Nestor Kirchner.

"One eye was more of a politician," Mujica is heard saying on a video published by the Uruguayan newspaper El Observador Thursday. He goes on to say that she has no idea what she is doing, referencing her trip to Rome to visit the Argentine Pope Francis.

"You're not going to go to a 70-year-old Argentine pope and explain to him what's a map, what's mate (Argentine tea) and what's a flask," Mujica said.


"Argentine Foreign Minister Hector Timerman formally protested to Uruguay's ambassador, calling the comments 'unacceptable and denigrating ... particularly from someone whom Dr. Kirchner had considered to be a friend.'

"Mujica, however, said he had nothing to apologize for because 'publicly, I've never talked about Argentina,' and insisted that the countries will remain close allies, no matter what.

"'Even though history separated us, nothing and no one can tear apart our history,' Mujica said. 'We were born from the same placenta as the Argentine people, and if this drama has separated us, the pain also draws us together.'"'


He replied: "What's one more stripe on a tiger?"




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