This article was originally published in The Dispatch, on April 10, 2024.
Ecuadorian police stormed the Mexican Embassy in the capital city of Quito on Friday to apprehend Jorge Glas, the former vice president of Ecuador. Glas was in the embassy seeking political asylum after having been found guilty of corruption by the current Ecuadorian government.
The raid escalates monthslong disputes between the governments of Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa and Mexican President Andres Manuel López Obrador. Ecuador has justified the operation by accusing Mexico of interfering in Ecuadorian domestic affairs, and Mexico has responded by breaking diplomatic relations with Ecuador.
The fallout from the dispute is evolving, but the incident could have implications for the entire hemisphere.
Who is Jorge Glas, and why was he in the Mexican embassy?
From 2013 to 2017, Jorge Glas was vice president of Ecuador under Rafael Correa, the country’s former left-wing leader. Correa is currently living in exile in Belgium after having been found guilty in absentia by an Ecuadorian court of accepting bribes.