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World

Argentine president's jokes on Twitter about Chinese accent causes uproar back home

Associated Press
Published | Updated
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    Chinese President Xi Jinping, right, and Argentinian President Cristina Fernandez shake hands after signing documents following their meeting at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2015. (AP Photo/Rolex Dela Pena) (The Associated Press)

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    Argentinean President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner delivers a statement during a signing ceremony with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2015. (AP Photo/Rolex Dela Pena, Pool) (The Associated Press)

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    Argentine President Cristina Fernandez waves at Chinese children waving the Chinese and Argentine flags as she walks next to Chinese President Xi Jinping during a welcome ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2015. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan) (The Associated Press)

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina – Argentine President Cristina Fernandez, seeking badly needed investment in China, has joked on Twitter about Chinese accents, causing a furor back home.

Fernandez tried to mimic Chinese accents on her Twitter account Wednesday, switching "r's" with "l's" in a tweet in Spanish that translates as: "Did they only come for lice and petloleum."

A few minutes later, she added: "Sorry, the levels of ridiculousness and absurdity are so high they can only be digested with humor."

The tweets came as she met with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

As of late Wednesday in Argentina, there was no official response about the tweets by Fernandez, a prolific user of social media. But social media in the South American country exploded with criticism of what many considered a racist tweet.