The Big Stories to watch this week in LATAM
US and Colombia in a war of words, and trade. Peru wants to topple another president. Ecuador still raging, and Bolivia has kind of boring elections
LATAM Daily Wires brings you the stories to watch this week in Latin America and the big headline developments over the weekend. If you haven’t subscribed yet, you should.
The growing US-Colombia crisis
The long-running feud between Colombian President Gustavo Petro and Donald Trump came to a head this weekend after Petro accused the US of killing Colombian citizens as part of ongoing drone strikes against what the US claims are drug vessels in the Caribbean, mostly near Venezuela.
Trump called Petro a “drug dealer,” promised to withdraw all aid to Colombia, and imposed 10% tariffs on most goods. Here at PWS, we did a feature on the situation Saturday, but it continues to move quickly. Colombia withdrew its ambassador on Monday, and Petro threatened to nullify the Free Trade Agreement between the two countries.
The US strikes, which have killed dozens of people and are widely viewed as a violation of US and international law, have drawn strong criticism from Petro and rebukes in return from Washington.
With neither president so far willing to back down, the story merits close attention this week. Until Trump took office in January, Colombia was the closest US ally in South America.
Protests continue in Peru: one president down, one to go
The least popular president in the world, Dina Boluarte, was finally removed from office. But that hasn’t slowed down ongoing protests across the country. A popular singer was killed by police with a firearm during demonstrations in Lima. Protesters have called for the resignation of Boluarte’s replacement, Jose Jeri, who was installed by Congress in a midnight procedure without voter input.
Lawmakers hoped her removal would calm protests, but it hasn’t. There were large marches across the country over the weekend. Jeri is Peru’s 8th president in less than 10 years, and it isn’t clear how long he will last.
The Peruvian government declared a state of emergency in Lima on Saturday.
Ecuador is also still in the streets
Ecuadorian president Daniel Naboa suspended formal talks with the indigenous groups leading a national strike in the country, claiming they aren’t negotiating in good faith. Initially sparked by an end to fuel subsidies, the protests started in rural, mostly indigenous areas, but have since spread to urban centers, including the capital city of Quito.
Naboa has called those in the streets “terrorists” and falsely claimed that they are paid by Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua. The government has frozen the bank accounts of some indigenous leaders and environmental activists.
Human Rights Watch has accused security forces of violence and abuse against protesters.
Bolivia has kind of boring elections
Two right wing candidates competed in the second round of presidential elections, Rodrigo Paz, a right-center candidate won the contest. His victory represents an end to nearly 20 years of continuous rule by the Movement for Socialism (MAS) party.
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