Outrage in Ecuador: CARICOM concerned at storming of Mexican Embassy

In light of heightening tensions between Ecuador and Mexico, the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) has called on both sides to resolve the matter through dialogue so that the region can remain a zone of peace.

CARICOM, in a statement affirmed the importance of adherence to the principles of international law and rules of diplomatic engagement enshrined in the Vienna Convention which codifies the inviolability of diplomatic missions and consular offices.

“CARICOM is therefore deeply concerned that the Republic of Ecuador has recently taken actions that have violated the premises of the Embassy of Mexico in Quito,” the statement noted.

But what really is happening between the two states?

According to international reporting, Ecuador is facing outrage after local law enforcement stormed the Mexican embassy in Quito to arrest former Ecuadorian Vice President Jorge Glas, a controversial figure who had been seeking asylum there.

CNN reported that the Friday night arrest of Glas prompted Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador to order the immediate suspension of diplomatic ties with Quito.

In a post on X, Obrador called the act a “flagrant violation of international law and the sovereignty of Mexico.”

The breach of diplomatic convention has sent shockwaves through the region, with Latin American leaders from across the political spectrum condemning the incident. Under diplomatic norms, embassies are considered protected spaces.

It marks the culmination of a series of diplomatic provocations between Mexico and Ecuador this week. Glas has since been transferred to a maximum-security prison in Guayaquil known as La Roca, Ecuadorean authorities said.

Glas served under leftist ex-President Rafael Correa between 2013 and 2017. He had most recently been accused by Ecuadorian authorities of embezzling government funds meant to help rebuild after a devastating 2016 earthquake.

Following his arrest, a host of Latin American countries – including regional giants Brazil and Argentina – rallied around Mexico to condemn Ecuador. Several pointed to a violation of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, the international treaty that defines a framework for relations between countries.

Some also pointed to a breach of Glas’s right to asylum.

Nicaragua has joined Mexico in severing diplomatic ties with Ecuador.
The right-wing Argentinian government called for “full observance of the provisions of that international instrument as well as the obligations arising from the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.”

Left-wing Colombian President Gustavo Petro said Glas’s right to asylum was “barbarically violated,” while Honduras President Xiomara Castro said the assault on the embassy “constitutes an intolerable act for the international community.”

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres was “alarmed” by the raid, his spokesperson said. Stéphane Dujarric, spokesperson for the Secretary-General, said Guterres reaffirmed “the cardinal principle of the inviolability of diplomatic and consular premises and personnel.”