Lima breaks diplomatic relations with Mexico over the asylum of the former prime minister

Peru announced it was cutting diplomatic ties with Mexico after its government granted asylum to a former Peruvian prime minister facing charges of a 2022 coup attempt.

Peruvian Foreign Minister Hugo de Zella expressed his “surprise and deep regret” after learning that Betsy Chavez had been granted asylum in the Mexican embassy in Peru.

“Given this hostile act … the government of Peru has decided today to sever diplomatic relations with Mexico,” Zella said.

In response, Mexico’s foreign ministry “rejected Peru’s unilateral decision as excessive and disproportionate.”

Chávez was jailed in June 2023 for her alleged role in ousted Peruvian President Pedro Castillos’ plan to dissolve Congress. She was released by a judge on bail in September and denied the charges against her.

Peru also accused Mexico of “repeated cases in which the current and former presidents of this country have interfered in the internal affairs of Peru.”

“The truth is that they tried to portray the authors of the coup attempt as victims, when in reality Peruvians live and want to continue living in a democracy recognized by all countries in the world, with the one and only exception of Mexico,” Zella added.

Prosecutors are seeking a 25-year sentence for Chavez’s alleged role in Castillo’s plan to dissolve Congress.

Castillo was arrested in December 2022 on sedition charges after he tried to dissolve Congress and establish an emergency government.

Hours after the attempt, Castillo was impeached. Since then, he has been remanded in custody.

Prosecutors are seeking 34 years in prison for Castillo, who previously said he never took up arms against the state because the military refused his orders.

Peru’s decision to cut diplomatic ties with Mexico heightens ongoing tensions between the two governments since Castillo’s ouster.

In 2022, Lima expelled Mexico’s ambassador following its decision to grant asylum to Castillo’s wife and children following his arrest.

A year later, Peru also recalled its ambassador to Mexico after then-President Andrés Manuel López Obrador expressed his support for Castillo, saying he had been “illegally ousted.”

A former elementary school teacher, farmer and union activist, Castillo has been called “Peru’s first poor president.”

With no previous political experience, he took office as an outsider in government, promising to transform Peru’s deteriorating economy and support the poor.

But Castillo’s presidency ended in disgrace after his attempt to seize power was declared unconstitutional, with government officials and the country’s armed forces refusing to support him.

Casillo’s successor, former president Dina Bolwarte, was removed from office last month by an overwhelming majority in Peru’s Congress after mass protests against political scandals and rising crime.

Congress leader Jose Jerry was then sworn in as interim president.