Mexico breaks diplomatic ties with Ecuador after embassy arrest

On Friday, Mexico severed diplomatic relations with Ecuador after law enforcement entered the Mexican embassy and arrested the former Ecuadorian vice president, who had been living on the premises since late last year.

Ecuadorian police raided the Mexican embassy in Ecuador’s capital, Quito, and arrested former Eduardan Vice President Jorge Glas, who had sought asylum at the diplomatic compound. Glass had been in the embassy’s custody since December.

Ecuador’s president said Glass had been sentenced to prison on corruption charges and a warrant had been issued for his arrest. office.Mexico Grass was granted asylum. in the early hours of Friday.

Mexico’s Foreign Minister Alicia Bárcena announced the suspension of diplomatic relations with Ecuador, saying the move violated the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.she Said Mexican diplomats at the embassy were injured during the attack.

The arrests come amid months of simmering tensions between the two countries. On Thursday, the Ecuadorian government Said A Mexican ambassador was no longer needed following comments by Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador regarding last year’s Ecuadorian elections.

After Friday’s arrest, Glass was taken to the attorney general’s office on Saturday and then flown to Guayaquil, a city 435 miles south of Quito, where he will be taken into custody, according to the Associated Press.

Mr. Glass served as Ecuador’s vice president from 2013 to 2017. Grass racked up corruption charges during his tenure and was eventually found guilty of accepting bribes from construction giant Odebrecht, the paper said. new york times. He was sentenced to six years in prison. He was convicted in a separate corruption case in 2020 and sentenced to eight years in prison, according to the Times. He was released early in November 2022, but faced new embezzlement charges.