The president of Mexico, Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO), pointed out that the Summit of the Americas could contribute to “open a new stage” in relations between the countries of the regionin which we move from “interference” and “impositions” by the United States to cooperation and union.
“It is time to inaugurate a new stage” in America, without “hegemony, interference or impositions. A change in the foreign policy of the world is necessary. It is no longer possible to continue with the Monroe Doctrine, nor with the slogan of ‘America for the Americans’, nor maintain the struggles that originated during the Cold War,” AMLO said.
The president announced in his traditional morning conference that will talk about it with former senator Christopher Doddappointed by the government of Joe Biden as special adviser for the Summit of the Americas, to be held in June in Los Angeles, California.
“The summit could help initiate a new policy and I have confidence in President BidenI think he could take this step and leave behind all that anachronistic, unjust, subordinate policy, of lack of respect for the independence and sovereignty of the peoples,” added AMLO.
He commented that he has “the dream” that with the summit the countries of the continent unite to cooperate. “I have that dream that in Los Angeles we all unite, and they share that point of view -because it is not only ours- other peoples and governments. I repeat: I believe that the president who could initiate this new stage, and become the driver of this new policy in America is Biden”AMLO concluded.
Convince Bolsonaro
The meeting between Dodd and AMLO would be face-to-face, but it will be virtual due to the contagion of coronavirus from the American, who also planned to travel to Brazil on Friday to try convince Jair Bolsonaro to attend the meeting of leaders of the continentconsidered by Washington the most relevant continental event for the United States.
From the White House it has been defined as the “only” event that brings together the heads of state of the entire continent, however, the meeting runs the risk of have significant absences due to signals from Bolsonaro and AMLO that they have no intention of attendingwhich are added to those of the Bolivian Luis Arce.
For North Americans, holding the ninth Summit of the Americas without the leaders of the region’s two largest economies would be a diplomatic fiasco and would reinforce the image that Washington no longer has the leading role of yesteryear. AMLO said last week, like Arce, that he would only attend if the United States invited the governments of Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela, considered dictatorships by the White House.
Relaxation of sanctions
Although an invitation to these countries has been practically ruled out by US officials, the interlocutors assess that the relaxation of sanctions and restrictions against Cuba and Venezuela, announced Monday and Tuesday, They were also signals from Biden to try to break the reluctance of the Mexican president to participate in the summit.
This Monday, the United States announced the withdrawal of the measures imposed during the presidency of Donald Trump on remittances and trips to Cuba. In practice, the new determinations facilitate, among other things, the sending of dollars from Cubans residing in the United States to relatives on the island. The easing of sanctions against Venezuela should allow the state oil company PDVSA to start negotiations international ones that were previously prohibited.
One of the immediate consequences of Washington’s measures was the recent announcement by the government of Nicolás Maduro to resume negotiations with the opposition in Mexicosponsored by the Norwegian government and with the support of the international community.
*From the Regional News Agency, especially for Page 12.