AMLO: Mexico wins a new Latin American order

It took almost three years in office, but Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador finally spoke with Latin America. “Rather than creating something like the European Union, this proposal is more or less connected to our history, our reality and our identities. In that sense, change OAS With a truly autonomous system, there is no catcher. “This is the message that the Mexican president sent to the region on the eve of Simon Bolivar’s birthday on July 24 and he presented it at a meeting of foreign ministers. Society of Latin American and Caribbean States (Selag), In an extraordinary speech to a president who has not met any colleagues in the region and who has defended “the best foreign policy domestic” since he came to power in December 2018. The political moment puts Mexico at the center of the regional stage: leading a collective response to the epidemic, testing its collective power for a meeting of Czech heads of state to be held next September and Venezuela is emerging as the headquarters for talks on the crisisIn the absence of an official announcement it seems a fact. Low-key foreign policy is over, at least for now.

The slogan “America for Americans” ended up shattering the people of our continent, “said Lopez Obrador at the Sapuldebe Castle, where the peace treaty was signed in 1992 after Mexican mediation. Armed conflicts in El Salvador, a fact passed on in the President’s speech. “There is only one special case in Cuba that has asserted its independence by confronting the United States politically for more than half a century. We can agree or disagree with the Cuban revolution and its government, but it is a great achievement to oppose 62 years without submitting,” he said. Until then he has sent two ships with food and medical supplies, at the president’s explicit request Miguel Diaz-Colonel. “I think it’s time for a new coexistence between all the nations of the United States, because the model imposed two centuries ago is exhausted, there is no future or way to it, it will no longer benefit anyone. We must set aside the dilemma of joining the United States or opposing ourselves defensively,” the Mexican president said. Added. “We are not a protector, a colony or your backyard,” he concluded.

Governments like Venezuela and Cuba are very interested in Lopez Obrador’s speech, but this has aroused some reluctance, as has the Colombian foreign ministry, and has led to a large-scale silence on things like Brazil. Beyond the media noise in support of the spears on Cuba and the OAS, the internationalist Natalia Saltalamachia highlighted the extraordinary geopolitical reading of Lopez Obrador in public. An educator at Mexico’s Autonomous Technology Institute said: “The novelty was given in simple and straightforward language about what awaits Latin America in the era of hegemonic rivalry between China and the United States.” The news emphasizes that Mexico is interested in a strong Washington, while at the same time emphasizing the need to reconsider the rules for better relations with the continent: greater political autonomy and better economic cooperation.

The key question is how this new continental regulation will be based on concrete. Retired diplomat Ernesto Campos says the idea is not new and was promoted by people like Lula or Hugo Chavez without success. “I do not see an environment to change the OAS or create a new system,” says Campos, who is Mexico’s representative in several countries in the region and a former director of the State Department for Latin America. The current government’s big bet, Selak, is not as important as Brazil, except for the obvious ones in the US and Canada. “It’s a lot of box office talk, but you can’t have a real conversation without considering the three countries with the largest regional extension and the largest population.” The political capital, and the time he has been in power, in three years is not enough to advance an issue that is not a priority for the White House.

Replacing the OAS seems easy, but both experts agree that removing this organizational structure does not seem possible. Inwardly, Lopez Obrador is characterized by beheading systems that, in his view, are inappropriate, corrupt, or dysfunctional. But OAS is not just the title of a letter, it talks about the human rights system between Americans that acts as a last resort against dictatorships, state assassinations and the violation of personal guarantees. “This may be due to a deep ignorance of what the system does,” Campos raises the question. In the case between the Mexican State Department and the former US Colonies Ministry as the reason for the OAS. Louis Almacro. “The third largest taxpayer disappearing country says more about the mismanagement of the OAS general secretary than the sender of the message,” Chaltalamachia argues.

In addition to the confrontation with Almacro, the Mexican government carefully selected its wars, up to its sleeve with a wild cover of non-interventionist policy. He spoke out in support of the Cuban Revolution, was loyal to the Mexican diplomatic tradition, and raised his voice in opposition. Evo Morales in Bolivia. Very cautiously, he criticized the repression Nicaragua by Daniel Ortega, But it is elusive about the government Nicolas Maduro. “This is a very simple application of a non-interventionist policy, for the convenience of practice,” Campos observes. “Saying a little is an excuse,” concluded Saltalamachia.

In Mexican analysis, being blunt about Venezuela brings more costs than benefits. But talking about a regional leader is willing to accept costs, other than talking about a country, leading and collecting sympathies. It is not clear if Mexico is going to accept that role, with bees and sacrifices. Yes, thanks to the balance between Maduro and his opponents, he is given the opportunity to take on a specific role that is conditional on the success or failure of negotiations. However, it is not yet clear what role it will play in the process if it mediates or limits itself in facilitating conversations.

What has changed in Mexico’s initiative? One hypothesis is that the attitude of the Lopez Obrador government to keep that low profile was shattered by an environment in which it could not recover within itself. “An international reality is being imposed,” says Chaltalamachia. The other part is explained by an internal factor: emphasis Marcelo Ebrat, The foreign secretary appeared to be confined to a very small space at the beginning of the six-year term and used the epidemic to develop his political capital and his leadership with a view to creating a presidential candidate in 2024. Suddenly, the country he had largely looked into, he had the opportunity to take the initiative and participate in the most relevant regional political events later this year.

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