White House admonishes Ecuador over Mexican embassy raid

Sullivan urges Ecuador and Mexico to seek resolution as dispute could head to The Hague

President Biden’s national security adviser rebuked Ecuador’s government from the White House podium and said that it was clear the country had violated international law with a raid on Mexico’s embassy in Quito.

Ecuadorian police stormed the facility last Friday with the intention of arresting ex-Vice President Jorge Glas, who was seeking political asylum in Mexico. The former Ecuadorian official has been convicted twice on bribery charges he says are politically motivated. Mr Glas was detained and taken away by police during the raid.

Jake Sullivan told reporters on Tuesday that the Ecuadorian government had “disregarded its obligations under international law as a host state to respect the inviolability of diplomatic missions” and had “jeopardised the foundation of basic diplomatic norms and relationships”.

White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan speaks to reporters at the 9 April daily press briefing (Getty Images)

Having reviewed security footage of the incident released by Mexican authorities earlier on Tuesday, Mr Sullivan added that the actions of Ecuadorian police were “wrong”.

“We’ve asked Ecuador to work with Mexico to find a resolution to this diplomatic dispute, and to that end, we welcome the Organization of American States’s permanent council meeting this week to help reach a peaceful, diplomatic solution.

Mexican officials have said that an unspecified number of diplomatic staffers were injured during the raid by Ecuadorian police. Embassy grounds are rarely breached by the law enforcement agencies of host countries, which is typically considered to be a violation of the Vienna Convention. Roberto Canseco, Mexico’s head of consular affairs, was present for the raid and attempted to resist the entry of police as they stormed the building — he was detained and allegedly held to the ground during the operation.

Ecuador’s government claims that the Mexican offer of asylum to Mr Glas was illegal and did not follow proper international procedures.

The president of Mexico, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, called the raid a “flagrant violation of international law and the sovereignty of Mexico” and has ended formal diplomatic ties with Ecuador over the incident.

“I have instructed our chancellor to issue a statement regarding this authoritarian act, proceed legally and immediately declare the suspension of diplomatic relations with the government of Mexico,” the Mexican president said.