Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador threatened to withdraw Mexico from next month’s Summit of the Americas unless the United States issued an invitation to the countries of Cuba, Nicaragua, and Venezuela in a press conference on Tuesday in the Mexican capital.
For example, as López Obrador explained during his daily press conference in Mexico City, “Participation in the Los Angeles Summit has not yet been decided because we are proposing that no one be excluded because we seek the unity of all of America,” he said, “Participation in the Los Angeles Summit has not yet been decided.”
“In our opinion, there should be no arguing or counter-argumentation. This problem will remain unsolved unless we communicate with one another about our differences; we have a strong working relationship with President Biden’s administration and are eager to work with them to resolve it. Attendance is open to the general public. That is how Mexico perceives the situation “he explained.
Officials from the United States have cited the human rights records of the governments of Cuba, Nicaragua, and Venezuela as justifications for not inviting them to the summit.
The United States, in its capacity as a summit host, can select and choose which international leaders will be invited to participate.
On Tuesday, the White House stated that no decisions had been made regarding López Obrador’s remarks.
In a statement, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said, “We haven’t decided who will be invited, and no invitations have been sent out yet.”
If Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador declines to attend the summit, which is scheduled to take place in June this year, the White House and the administration of US President Joe Biden would be making a significant snub to the region in the face of increasing Chinese interaction. The summit is scheduled to take place in June this year.
After returning from a trip to Central America and Cuba, where he met with Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel and former president Raul Castro, Mexican President Felipe Calderon addressed the nation in a speech. In Cuba, López Obrador stated that he would make it clear to President Biden that no country from the Americas would be excluded from the meeting if he were elected.
López Obrador continued, “It is clear to me that there are political parties in the United States that want to hold the people of Latin America and the Caribbean hostage, as in the case of a blockade against Cuba, which has been strongly advocated by Cuban officials with a lot of power in the United States.”
He went on to say that because human rights are at stake, the US government must make a decision on the matter, which is a matter of sovereignty. “A whole population cannot be compelled to suffer for the sake of a group,” he said.
He went on to state the following: “Sollten any individuals are overlooked, the Mexican government would dispatch a representative, but I will not do it myself. Marcelo Ebrard, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, would be representing me.”
Every four years, countries from North, Central, and South America, as well as the Caribbean, come together for the Summit of the Americas.
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