LOS ANGELES – On the eve of the Summit of the Americas, the Biden administration tried to avoid the embarrassment of being boycotted by key leaders – only to be rebuffed.
American officials have spent weeks negotiating with the Mexican government, trying to find a way to entice President Andrés Manuel López Obrador to the meeting in Los Angeles. Vice President Kamala Harris phoned the Honduran leader to convince her to come. Top aides were sent to try to convince the leaders of El Salvador and Guatemala.
Nothing works. Heads of state in all four countries declined to attend the meeting, a blow to Mr Biden as he seeks to work towards unity and common purpose across the Western Hemisphere.
Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele will not even speak to Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken, according to four people familiar with the outreach, who are not authorized to speak publicly.
The absence has raised doubts about the relevance of a summit intended to showcase cooperation between neighboring countries, but has instead fueled rifts in an increasingly available region. ready to challenge American leadership.
“It shows deep divisions within the continent,” said Martha Bárcena, a former Mexican ambassador to the United States. The leaders who decide not to attend are “challenging the influence of the United States, because the influence of the United States is diminishing on the continent,” Ms Bárcena said.
The Biden administration has said that much can be achieved without the president at the table, as the foreign ministers appointed on their behalf also have the ability to sign deals.
“The United States remains the most powerful force in promoting hemispheric action to address the core challenges facing the people of the Americas,” said Karine Jean-Pierre, White House press secretary. know Monday.
However, while those absent from the area are boycotting for various reasons, they all seem to be displeased with the way the government is using its power.
Mr. López Obrador had been telegraphing for weeks that he would not attend unless authorities invited Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua. The leftist president of Honduras, Xiomara Castro, joined her group and said she would also bow unless the meeting included those countries.
Letting them leave the summit, Mr. López Obrador said, “means continuing with old politics, interventionism, disrespect for countries and their people.”
The leaders of Guatemala and El Salvador were more concerned about their own relationship with the United States than the guest list.
After taking office, the Biden administration launched an anti-corruption strike in both countries, sanctioning senior officials and call out cognitive effort undermine the democratic institutions of the two Central American governments.
Guatemala’s president, Alejandro Giammattei, said he would not attend the summit a day later Mr. Blinken said that his government’s choice as attorney general was linked to “substantial corruption.”
“I sent word that I wouldn’t go,” said Mr. Giammattei, adding: “As long as I am president, this country will be respected and its sovereignty will be respected. ”
Mr. Bukele has not made his argument public, but people familiar with the Salvadoran president’s thinking say he did not see the point of shaking hands and taking a photo together as dialogue between the two countries has essentially broken down.
