New York. Juan Gonzalez, director of the National Security Council for the Western Hemisphere, confirmed that US President Joe Biden “personally wants” Mexican President Andres Manuel Lபpez Obrador to attend the US summit. Taking into account the opinion of Mexico, it conducted “respectable” conversations with its southern neighbors on the matter.
“Our relationship with Mexico is positive and will continue,” Gonzalez said, adding that participation in the summit will not affect cooperation between the United States and Latin America. Lopez Obrador said his country would be represented by Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrat if he did not attend.
Despite threats from several Latin American presidents not to attend, senior US State Department officials said at a conference that they hoped to attend the summit.
Gonzalez said he did not believe the controversy created by not inviting countries like Venezuela or Nicaragua to the summit was a “distraction” to its success.
“I think the results will allow us to talk about themselves,” Gonzalez said. “We did not focus on the issue of who was invited, but rather on the results we wanted to achieve at the summit.”
Gonzalez said the final list of invited countries has not yet been released by the White House. Foreign Minister Kevin O’Reilly, who co-ordinated preparations for the summit last week, said neither Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela nor Daniel Ortega of Nicaragua had been invited to attend the U.S. Senate hearing. But he did open the door to Cuba. On the same day President Miguel Diaz-Canel denied that he had attended. O’Reilly said Cuban civil society has been invited.
The summit, which begins Monday in Los Angeles, brings together leaders from across the Americas. The United States is holding its second meeting in Miami since 1994.