CELAC members evaluate possible sanctions against Ecuador after raid on Mexican embassy

In a virtual session led by Honduras, the assault on the diplomatic headquarters in Quito aimed at arresting former Ecuadorian Vice President Jorge Glas was discussed.

This Tuesday, April 16, the leaders of the CELAC countries, the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, met to address the diplomatic crisis involving Ecuador and Mexico.

At the meeting, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador asked his peers to support him in his complaint against Ecuador in the International Court of Justice. Should no formal apology be made, the president assured that they seek to have Ecuador expelled from the United Nations due to the violation of Mexican sovereignty and international law.

During the meeting, the questioned president of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, announced the closing of the embassy and consulates of his country in Ecuador. The government of Nicaragua had already followed suit, breaking off relations with Quito last Saturday.

The presidents of Colombia and Brazil, Gustavo Petro and Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, also strongly condemned the assault on the embassy on April 5, when police forcibly entered the premises.

For his part, the president of Ecuador, Daniel Noboa, who was not present at the meeting but through his foreign minister, has defended the actions to arrest Glas, arguing that the former vice president of Rafael Correa’s administration has a criminal conviction for corruption. Glas had been in asylum there since December last year after being granted parole.

While the government assures that the measure was taken to defend national sovereignty and not to allow external intervention in the internal affairs of the country, the international community observed the sequence of events with concern.

Last week, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said in a statement that he was "alarmed" by the situation. The OAS, the Organization of American States, condemned Ecuador’s actions and called for a peaceful resolution of the differences with Mexico.

Author: Marina Vanni