By Katu Arkonada on May 5, 2024
Ecuadorian police and military storm Mexican Embassy
According to sources based in Washington, on condition of anonymity, the Ecuadorian government’s assault on the Mexican Embassy in Quito was an operation directed and supported behind the scenes by the U.S. government.
The main objective was to create a political-electoral strategy aimed at reinforcing President Noboa’s image in the run-up to the April 21 referendum, as well as to send a message to the progressive Citizen Revolution Movement (Revolucion Ciudadana)’
The second objective was to rarify the elections in Mexico, where the Morena party is in the lead, promoting lines of attack and crisis to Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador from the media and opposition forces. The third objective is to maintain the state of tension in the region, to prevent organizations such a the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) from being reactivated, complementing the offensive of the new Latin American right wing, which is waiting for Trump’s victory to go (even more) on the offensive.
As a fourth objective of the assault on the Embassy, the aim was to intimidate the opposition, especially Revolución Ciudadana, seeking to convey the message that the government is willing to cross any red line to crush Correism and make them disappear as a political force.
The assault on the Mexican Embassy in Ecuador had the prior consent of the U.S. Embassy, the State Department and the CIA. They informed the President of Ecuador that a possible imminent escape of Jorge Glas, similar to what happened in 2023 with the former Correista Minister María de los Ángeles Duarte, who was taking refuge in the Embassy of Argentina, would ridicule his government and would bury his aspiration for reelection, with an almost certain defeat in the popular vote.
The CIA station in Ecuador prepared in advance, together with Ecuadorian elite units, the operation to capture former Vice President Jorge Glas at the Mexican Embassy.
Prior to the operation, the CIA station in Quito shared with the government of Ecuador all available information from the Mexican Embassy, and the exact location of Jorge Glas. Information acquired from secret listening and filming applications illegally installed in the Mexican Embassy.
Hours before the raid on the Mexican Embassy, the President of Ecuador Daniel Noboa met secretly with the Ambassador of the United States, who gave his backing and consent to execute the action.
The military assault team was composed of foreign troops and advisors, who intervened wearing hoods and uniforms without official insignia, at the same time that the Embassy of Ecuador in the United States was in constant communication with the State Department during the development of the operation.
Currently, there is an alignment and subordination of the government of Ecuador with the United States, nothing is executed in the country without the approval of its Ambassador. Ecuador agreed with the United States, regardless of the fact that it has publicly “scolded” them, that the imperialist power was going to use its containment capacity so that the matter would not escalate, and to avoid economic implications and the application of sanctions against Ecuador. The United States for its part guaranteed Noboa, together with its regional and European allies, that the negative impact, both political and economic, would be limited.
Internationally, the incompetence of those responsible for Ecuadorian foreign policy, who do not represent the diplomatic officials of its Foreign Ministry, has become evident. In fact, the Minister of Foreign Affairs herself, Gabriela Sommerfeld, comes from business sectors linked to Israeli Zionism, with no previous links to diplomacy.
Lawfare, or the judicialization of politics, is driving major geopolitical changes in the region. An example of this is the actions of Lenin Moreno when he promoted through the judiciary the political persecution against Correa and his closest political circle. The same persecution that was or is being used against Dilma and Lula in Brazil, Evo in Bolivia, or Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner in Argentina. The objective is to destroy the main leaders and currents of the Latin American left, leaving the way clear for the rise of the new Latin American right wing.
Noboa and his government are not interested in what the international community says or does, and is gradually adopting a profile similar to that of Bukele, a figure for whom Noboa sympathizes. It is no coincidence that El Salvador was the only country that abstained in the condemnation resolution at the OAS.
Right now, Noboa’s government has other options that could be implemented in a scenario in which in the consultation won the Bukeleization of the security model, in order to reinforce its image internally while thinking about the presidential elections next year. The arrest warrant against the Prefect of Pichincha Paola Pabon for the crime of embezzlement is ready, and a coup in the form of the arrest of the narco “Fito”, to show Noboa’s commitment in the fight against organized crime.
Likewise, two important issues that could have a negative impact are being evaluated between the governments of the United States and Ecuador:
On the one hand, the questioning within the United Nations Security Council of Ecuador as a member country (observer) for violating international law and instigating a diplomatic conflict with another nation, or that contravenes the purposes of that body, consisting in theory with the preservation of international peace and security.
On the other hand, the loss of prestige and international leadership of Ecuador is in contradiction with the recognition of hosting the next Ibero-American Summit, to be held next November in the city of Cuenca.
In any case, everything seems to indicate that beyond containing these problems, there is a decision of the governments of the United States and Noboa’s Ecuador, to prevent by all means and at any cost, the victory of Revolucion Ciudadana in the presidential elections of February 9, 2025.
Source: Resumen Latinoamericano – English