Nearly two months after police stormed the Mexican embassy in Ecuador, the South American country’s government is resuming contact with Mexican authorities, hoping to find a resolution to the diplomatic rift caused by the unusual use of force.
Ecuador’s Foreign Minister Gabriela Sommerfeld said in an interview with The Associated Press on Tuesday that her country was “ready” to talk with Mexican officials and that the only non-negotiable issue was the release of Ecuador’s former Vice President Jorge Gras, who was the target of the April 5 attack.
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Glass had been granted political asylum just hours before police stormed the U.S. Embassy in Quito, found him in his bedroom and dragged him out.
Ecuador’s Foreign Minister Gabriela Sommerfeld spoke in an interview at her office in Quito, the Ecuadorian capital, on Tuesday, May 28, 2024. Sommerfeld said Ecuador has accepted Mexico’s request for a third country to act as a diplomatic communication channel, but did not specify which third country that would be. (AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa)
Sommerfeld said Ecuador had already accepted Mexico’s request for a third country to “assist as a diplomatic channel of communication”, but did not name the country. A day earlier, Mexican Foreign Minister Alicia Bárcena told radio that the third country would “probably” be Switzerland.
The attack sparked immediate condemnation of Ecuador from governments around the world and led the two rival countries to sue each other at the International Court of Justice.
Diplomatic missions are foreign territory under the Vienna Convention and are considered “inviolable,” meaning that host country law enforcement agencies cannot enter them without the permission of the ambassador.
Mr. Grass, convicted on two corruption counts, had been living in the diplomatic residence since mid-December while on parole. Days after Mexico’s foreign ministry said he had appeared at the embassy seeking “entry and protection,” a judge revoked his parole and ordered him to serve the remaining two years and 11 months of his sentence.
Ecuador’s President Daniel Novoa ordered authorities to search the embassy, but he defended it as a necessary step “to protect national security.” The government maintains that Grass is wanted for his criminal history, not for political reasons, and has accused Mexico of violating the Vienna Convention by granting him asylum.
Meanwhile, the government of Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has made the release of Mr. Grass, who is being held in a maximum-security prison in the port city of Guayaquil, a condition of any settlement.
Mexico quickly closed its embassy and two consulates after the attack, and Foreign Minister Barcena said a third country backing the two sides in the conflict would “protect” the Mexican embassy and ambassador’s residence and help remove the belongings of its 18 staff members.
Sommerfeld said trade between the two countries continues, as does “the care for our people” facilitated by other embassies and international organizations.
Asked about the continued migration of Ecuadorians to the United States, she acknowledged that migration has “increased significantly” over the past three years, but said the main causes are a lack of jobs and security.
Sommerfeld said officials estimate some 2.4 million Ecuadorians live outside their home country – more than 10 percent of the country’s population.
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Just over 123,000 Ecuadorians did not return home from international trips last year, according to official records. During the same period, about 120,000 Ecuadorians were detained at the U.S.-Mexico border, Sommerfeld said.
Noboa’s government is “trying to address the fundamental problems. We need security, jobs and education,” she said.
