Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei visited Ukraine on Monday and spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Giammattei met Zelenskyy in the capital, Kyiv, the first Latin American president to make the trip.
Many Latin American leaders have refused to take a position on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. This reflects, in some cases, decades-long ties to Russia and, in others, distrust of U. S. foreign policy goals.
“We stand in solidarity with the Ukrainian people, who resisted bravely,” Giammattei told a joint news conference. “As long as human lives are lost, we will not be able to silence our voices. “
“Let it be clear that since the beginning of this conflict, Guatemala has raised its voice,” he said. “We will be consistent with our words. Guatemala is not silent and will not remain silent.
Zelenskyy thanked Giammattei for helping sanctions against Russia and Guatemala’s help for a foreign court on crimes committed in the war.
The Ukrainian president noted that Latin America, like many other parts of the world, has suffered from emerging due to clashes in Ukraine, which is a major manufacturer of agricultural and other products.
“Only in combination can we create our world,” Zelenskyy said.
Critics of Giammattei’s government said the president had more pressing problems than he dealt with at home, adding corruption and human rights.
“The world knows how President Alejandro Giammattei is eroding democracy and selling impunity in his country. Ukraine will not replace this reality,” said Carolina Jimenez, president of the Washington Office on Latin America.
The United States has sharply criticized the weakening of anti-corruption efforts in Guatemala and last year canceled the U. S. visa of Guatemalan Attorney General Consuelo Porras, who is prosecuting former prosecutors.
Instead of addressing corruption, the government has prosecuted the former anti-corruption officers and more than 20 of them have fled the country.
Giammattei’s government and prosecutors have accelerated efforts initiated by his predecessor to cancel a U. N. -backed anti-corruption crusade that has put several senior officials, including former presidents, on the bar. They say those prosecutions themselves were spotty.
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