Donald Trump‘s unscripted public remarks are quite consistent, given his past record. Adding to that list, the president made an awkward personal remark while addressing Paraguayan President Santiago Peña during the inaugural Gaza Board of Peace meeting in Washington D.C.
“It’s always nice to be young and handsome. It doesn’t mean we have to like you. I don’t like young, handsome men. Women — I like. Men, I don’t have any interest,” Trump said, sparking reactions on social media.
One X user wrote, “What a creepy guy. Imagine being around him.” Another added, “He Can’t even pronounce Peña’s name properly.”
Trump’s comments came as leaders and delegations from nearly 50 countries gathered for the first session of his new Board of Peace, held at the recently renamed Donald J. Trump Institute of Peace.
Peña has been the 52nd president of Paraguay since 2023. His ideologies are conservative, similar to those of the Republican Party. Before his political career started, Peña was an adjunct professor at the Catholic University of Asunción, where he taught financial theory.
The alliance between the United States and Paraguay is based on a history of cooperation, common interests, bilateral trade relations and mutual regard.
During the Board of Peace address, Trump also took a jibe at U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez for her performance at the Munich Security Conference, contrasting her record with that of Vice President J.D. Vance.
“I don’t like young handsome men. Women I like.”
Trump introducing Paraguay’s leader Santiago Peña, who is 47 years old. pic.twitter.com/QgpzRdTEvZ
— Drop Site (@DropSiteNews) February 19, 2026
According to The Times of Israel, the president frequently deviated from his rambling speech, which lasted 47 minutes and mixed foreign and domestic policy comments with personal remarks.
Trump praised foreign leaders, including Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and Argentine President Javier Milei, calling them “populist allies.” He claimed his support helped Milei secure a “landslide” win.
He highlighted peace efforts in Armenia and Azerbaijan, lauded Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev as “two tough cookies,” and praised countries like Albania and Azerbaijan for helping resolve conflicts.
Trump said, pointing to Pashinyan and Aliyev, “You think that was easy? It wasn’t easy. These are two tough people – good people, but tough people.” In August, Trump hosted Pashinyan and Aliyev at the White House, where the two leaders signed a peace agreement aimed at ending decades of conflict.
The U.S. president also claimed to have brokered peace between the two leaders during meetings at the Oval Office. “We made a deal, they hugged, they signed and we had peace,” Trump said. “Two very important countries — and I’ll never forget it,” he added.
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Previously, the White House has referred to Trump as the “peace president” following his announcement of the Israel-Hamas peace deal. He proudly stated that he deserves the Nobel Prize for his ongoing efforts to promote world peace.
This, however, is not the first time the president has spoken vaguely while addressing world leaders, according to The Daily Beast. Trump fumbled while addressing business leaders at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit in Gyeongju, South Korea.
“We saved millions and millions of lives with all of them. Azer…baijan. If you look at, if you look at, errr—” Trump said, before abandoning the attempt and adding vaguely, “Just take a look at that one.”
