Washington, February 28 The United States government on Tuesday expressed its wish that Peruvian President Dina Boluarte reach an agreement with her country’s Congress to advance the elections and end the crisis triggered by the auto -failed coup by former President Pedro Castile.
“We hope that President Boluarte and Congress can come to an agreement to move the elections forward and that Peruvians can have confidence in democracy,” said Brian Nichols, assistant secretary of the State Department for Latin America, at a conference at George University. capital.
Nichols, who served as US ambassador to Peru between 2014 and 2017, said successive changes of government in the Andean country in recent years demonstrate “the fragility of Peruvian democracy” and that Castillo’s attempt was “clearly unconstitutional”.
For this reason, he said that Joe Biden’s government is “carefully” monitoring events in Peru and supporting “efforts to promote democratic order” in the country.
At the beginning of February, the Peruvian Congress failed in four attempts to advance the legislative elections, which, unless surprisingly, buries the possibility of elections this year.
TENSION WITH VENEZUELA, NICARAGUA AND CUBA
In a review of US policy in the region, the undersecretary said he welcomed the resumption of talks between the government of Nicolás Maduro and the Venezuelan opposition, but warned that sanctions against the Caribbean country will remain intact as long as there are no “concrete steps towards a democratic solution”
He also applauded the “release” of 222 Nicaraguan political prisoners who were recently expelled from their country and sent to the United States, but demanded that the government of Daniel Ortega “stop the abuses” against the opposition, including the withdrawal of Nicaraguan nationality. of hundreds of opponents.
Regarding Cuba, he assured that the United States is focusing on access to financing for Cuban entrepreneurs as the island goes through its “worst economic crisis in decades”, while demanding that Havana “unconditionally release all political prisoners”.
“The possibility of improving our relations with these countries, whether with Cuba, Venezuela or Nicaragua, depends in large part on the willingness of these countries to make positive changes that respect fundamental rights,” Nichols said. .
THE IMPORTANT RELATIONSHIP WITH MEXICO
The diplomat defined the relationship with Mexico as one of the “most important and dynamic”, and underlined the “deep commitment” of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador to combat drug trafficking in American territory.
“There is enough fentanyl in America to kill every man, woman and child in our country,” Nichols told the students.
Regarding the government of Gustavo Petro in Colombia, he said that the United States will work with him to fight the climate crisis and to “achieve peace in this country”.
He also celebrated Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s “commitment to democracy” and condemned the January assault on the headquarters of the three branches of the Brazilian state by supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro. .
Nichols also recalled that this year marks the bicentennial of diplomatic relations between the United States and Chile, as well as the 50th anniversary of the coup in which President Salvador Allende died, in which Washington was involved.
The undersecretary expressed support for the United States to soon release all documents related to “this terrible time in history,” but said the situation was different now and that the role of the United States in the region was “incredibly positive”. ECE
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