by Chris Black
The Peruvian president and his prime minister were strongly opposed by Washington during their last election.
They are openly looking to National Socialism as an inspiration and development model.
Peru’s prime minister Thursday cited Adolf Hitler as a model in infrastructure development who turned Germany into a “leading economic power in the world,” a comment that drew outrage as his country continued to descend into political chaos.
Prime Minister Aníbal Torres celebrated the late Nazi leader while speaking in a cabinet session in Peru’s central region of Junín, where protests have erupted for nearly a week in response to the rising cost of fuel and fertilizer. Speaking of the need to invest in infrastructure, particularly in highways, Torres also mentioned Italian dictator Benito Mussolini.
“I’ll give you an example,” Torres said. “Italy, Germany were just like us, but on one occasion, Adolf Hitler visits northern Italy and Mussolini shows him a highway built from Milan to Brescia. Hitler saw that, he went to his country and filled it with highways, with airports. He made Germany the leading economic power in the world.”
The prime minister’s comments, following a series of political scandals in Peruvian President Pedro Castillo’s ever-changing cabinet, led to swift condemnations from the German and Israeli embassies in Peru.
“Adolf Hitler was a fascist and genocidal dictator, in whose name the worst war of all time was carried out from Germany and a genocide of 6 million Jews was committed,” the German Embassy said in a tweet Thursday that was also shared by the European Union in Peru. “Faced with this scenario, Hitler is not the appropriate reference as an example of any kind.”
Peru’s prime minister cited Adolf Hitler as a model in infrastructure development who turned Germany into a “leading economic power in the world,” a comment that drew outrage as his country continued to descend into political chaos. t.co/bQQY2Lorks
— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) April 8, 2022