No Sanctions Against Russia/Lula Da Silva Visits Mexico

Some states have reported no deaths related to COVID-19. Deputy Minister of Health Hugo López-Gatell announced that several states have reported having two to three days with no deaths related to COVID-19, which indicates that the country is coming out of the fourth wave. “Mortality is going down. We have a reduction of 82 percent compared to the peak of the epidemic. In addition, half of the entities in the country have presented consecutive days without deaths related to COVID-19. We are going to be monitoring this because it is an exit indicator of this epidemic cycle. We consider it to be very encouraging.”

According to data from the Ministry of Health, the total number of infections since the start of the pandemic is 5,508,629, while the death toll has risen to 318,149. Mexico currently ranks 16th globally in the number of confirmed infections and fifth globally with the most deaths behind the US, Brazil, India and Russia.

Mexico will not impose economic sanctions on Russia. President Andrés Manuel López Obrador announced that the Mexican government will not impose economic sanctions on any nation involved in the Ukrainian-Russian conflict. However, López Obrador assured that the country is against Russia's actions. “We are not going to impose economic sanctions. We want to have good relations with all the governments of the world, and we want to be in a position to be able to talk well with the parties in conflict.”

On the sixth day of the Ukraine-Russia conflict, Russian forces continue to try to seize the capital, Kiev. According to the Ukrainian military, Russia's attacks have slowed down, especially as Ukrainian resistance continues to rise across the country. Although many countries have announced that they will not send troops to Ukraine as it would become an international conflict, many countries, such as the US, Japan, Turkey and Poland,  have supported the Ukrainians through sanctions on Russia, military training, weapons, economic resources and asylum, among others. In addition, some Russian banks have been removed from SWIFT, a service that connects financial institutions across the world, to affect the country's ability to continue financing the war in Ukraine. After the announcement, the Russian ruble is worth less than 1 US cent.

 AMLO sends a proposal for ambassadors to the Senate. López Obrador announced that he has already sent his proposal for new ambassadors to the Senate and is awaiting their response. “There is already a significant number of new ambassadors proposed. It already has the go-ahead but the Senate still has not addressed the issue. We will be attentive to their response.” In addition, López Obrador explained that he did not send the appointment of Claudia Pavlovich for consul in Barcelona because it is not necessary. “There are consulates that do not require Senate approval and others do. I do not know if this is the case but I will do it and then the Senate will decide if it was the right thing to do."

In January, López Obrador announced that he would present a list of diplomatic appointments to the Senate for their approval. Among the appointments are former PRI governors Quirino Ordaz Coppel  for Mexico's ambassador to Spain, Carlos Miguel Aysa for ambassador to the Dominican Republic, Laura Beatriz Esquivel Valdés for ambassador to Brazil and Carlos Miguel Aysa González, for ambassador to the Dominican Republic.

Meanwhile, Pavlovich's appointment has caused controversy as she has been accused by opposition parties of embezzling money during her government. However, López Obrador stressed that there is no formal complaint against her or evidence, and the government continues to support her. In addition, López Obrador recognized that although it is everyone's right to express themselves freely, no one should be criticized without proof.

Visit of the former president of Brazil. López Obrador announced that former Brazilian President Lula de Silva is visiting Mexico, with whom he will have breakfast tomorrow at the National Palace. “It is a meeting of friends, and of those who are looking for things to change in Latin America and in the world. We are excited because Lula is a very important, recognized leader in Brazil, in Latin America and throughout the world.”

Lula, who was president of Brazil from 2003 to 2010, arrived in Mexico yesterday and was received by Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard. Lula plans to participate in the National Association of Legislators of the Fourth Transformation to exchange ideas with the government and especially with López Obrador's party, MORENA. The meeting is highly relevant since the Brazilian presidential elections will be held in October, in which Lula and current Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro are expected to be the favorite candidates. The meeting has been criticized because politicians say it could affect relations with Bolsonaro. However, López Obrador assured that he maintains a good relationship with the current government and will not discuss electoral matters.

Click HERE for full transcript in Spanish