Mexico's President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador Refuses to Impose Sanctions on Russia, Cites Want Good Relations With All Governments

Mexico's President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador announced that the Latin American nation will not be imposing any economic sanctions on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine.

Lopez Obrador cited wanting to have good relations with all the governments in the world as his reason to refuse imposing sanctions, according to a Reuters report.

The Mexican president also called out what he described as censorship of Russian state-sponsored media by social media companies.

Lopez Obrador said he does not agree that media from Russia or any country is censored.

Other Latin American administrations have strong links with Russia, such as Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua, while Russia's connection with Mexico is seen to be limited, with Mexico's strong relationship with the United States.

Lopez Obrador's statement came after a question about the interest in Mexico of Russia's second-largest oil producer Lukoil and Russian airline Aeroflot.

The president also confirmed that his administration has not reached out to the governments of Ukraine or Russia, adding that Mexico's role cannot go any further than providing humanitarian help, according to an Adolu Agency news report.

Lopez Obrador said they are reaching Ukraine through the United Nations, "but no more than that."

He added that they cannot fail into a leading role that has nothing to do with the control that should prevail in foreign policy.

Mexico's Stance on Russia-Ukraine Crisis

Lopez Obrador was internally criticized for his reluctance to condemn the invasion, with official Mexican reactions calling for dialogue between the parties.

Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard later issued a statement condemning the Russian attack a day after the hostilities erupted, according to a The Hill report.

Mexico was part of the 11 United Nations Security Council members to vote for a resolution condemning Russia's action.

China, India, and the United Arab Emirates abstained, while Russia vetoed the resolution.

Lopez Obrador said that they do not consider sanctions to correspond to them, adding that the best thing is to promote dialogue to achieve peace.

Financial experts noted that the sanctions against Russia could likely have a huge impact on the Latin Americans that were using Russian assistance to deal with U.S. sanctions imposed on their governments, according to a Newsweek report.

The Venezuelan government had started using Russian banks to make payments to other countries after the sanctions levied against them during former U.S. President Donald Trump's administration.

Russia-Ukraine Crisis

U.S. President Joe Biden has slammed Russian President Vladimir Putin in his State of the Union speech, saying that the Russian leader will pay a "continuing high price over the long run," according to an Aljazeera News report.

U.S. payment card firms Visa Inc. and Mastercard Inc. have blocked several Russian financial institutions from their network following the government's sanctions imposed on Russia.

The U.S. government is also expected to announce a ban on Russian flights from American airspace, a move that was earlier made by the European Union and Canada.

Ukraine's Ministry of Internal Affairs said 80,000 Ukrainians have returned home from abroad to join in the fight against Russia.

This article is owned by Latin Post

Written by: Mary Webber

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