China News Service, April 6 (Xinhua) On April 5, local time, the Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that the country had suspended diplomatic relations with the Ecuadorian government.
The sudden changes between the two Latin American countries are related to the assassination of one of Ecuador's presidential candidates, Fernando Villavicencio, before the election in August 2023, and the arrest of Ecuador's former Vice President Glass. .
File photo: Mexican President Lopez.
Are Mexican President’s remarks “inappropriate”?
Mexico’s ambassador to Ecuador expelled
On April 4, local time, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ecuador announced that the Mexican Ambassador to Ecuador, Raquel Serul Smek, was an "unwelcome person" and would leave the country "soon" because Ecuador was dissatisfied with the Mexican President. He recently made “inappropriate” remarks regarding the assassination of a presidential candidate in Ecuador in 2023.
The "inappropriate" remarks that Ecuador refers to were made by Mexican President Lopez at a regular government press conference regarding the assassination of Fernando Villavicencio, one of Ecuador's presidential candidates, before the election in August 2023. .
On August 9, 2023 local time, Villavicencio was shot and killed while holding a campaign rally in Quito, the capital of Ecuador, and nine other people were injured. One suspect was shot dead.
In the presidential election in October of the same year, the left-wing "Citizen Revolution" presidential candidate Gonzalez lost to the center-right "National Democratic Action Alliance" candidate Daniel Novoa, who took office in November.
When referring to this incident, Lopez said that some Eritrean media "unfairly" identified another candidate Luisa Gonzalez as being related to the incident, thus affecting the election.
Mexico is scheduled to hold presidential, legislative and local elections in June 2024. Lopez used this to compare the violence in Mexico's current election season, in which several local candidates were assassinated, to warn that "media platform owners and those involved in such campaigns must be responsible" in Mexico.
Image source: Screenshot of Reuters report
Eritrea police enter embassy
Mexico: International law and sovereignty violated
The immediate trigger for the Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs to announce the suspension of diplomatic relations with Ecuador was that the Ecuadorian police forcibly entered the Mexican Embassy in Ecuador and detained former Ecuadorian Vice President Grass who was seeking asylum in the embassy. Mexico called the action a "blatant violation of international law and Mexico's sovereignty."
According to reports, Glass served as former President Correa's deputy from 2013 to 2017. Since applying for political asylum in Mexico on December 17, 2023, Glass has been in the Mexican Embassy in Ecuador.
On April 5, 2024, Mexico asked Grass to leave the country within the framework of the Convention on Diplomatic Asylum. The Ecuadorian Ministry of Foreign Affairs subsequently issued a statement announcing that it would not provide safe passage for Grasse.
On the same day, the Ecuadorian Presidential Palace issued a statement stating that it had arrested former Ecuador Vice President Jorge Glass Espinel. The statement also said that the immunities and privileges of diplomatic missions cannot be abused. Ecuador is a sovereign country and will not allow any perpetrators to go unpunished.
The latest news shows that on the evening of April 5, local time, there were a large number of police outside the Mexican Embassy in Ecuador. The roads around the embassy were blocked and it was prohibited to approach. The specific situation is currently unclear. (over)