China protests after Argentine official blames CCP for Nepal disaster

A diplomatic dispute has emerged between Argentina and China following social media posts by Juan Pablo Carreira, the Director of Digital Communications for President Javier Milei’s administration. Carreira, known online as ‘Juan Doe’, attributed a catastrophic natural disaster in Nepal—which resulted in over 1,000 deaths and thousands of missing persons—to the mismanagement of a Chinese state-owned company.

Carreira claimed that a ‘mega-hydroelectric installation’ being built by a Chinese firm near a glacier caused a massive collapse, stating, ‘The Communist Party, dressed as an ‘entrepreneur,’ kills.’ He further compared the event to historical tragedies such as Chernobyl and the Holodomor.

The Chinese Embassy in Argentina issued a formal response, condemning the remarks as ‘malicious rumors’ driven by ‘biased ideological prejudices’ intended to tarnish China’s international image. The embassy urged Carreira to retract his statements immediately to prevent damage to bilateral relations and cooperation.

While Carreira linked the disaster to industrial failure, experts and official reports from China and Nepal have pointed to natural causes, specifically the sudden detachment of a high-altitude glacier. The incident has drawn criticism from Argentine political figures who argue that official foreign policy should not be influenced by social media activity.