LOS ANGELES — Monday’s confirmation by the Biden administration that Cuba, Nicaragua, and Venezuela were not invited to the U.S.-hosted Summit of the Americas, which is taking place this week, was widely anticipated. This decision led Mexico’s president, to boycott the meeting of leaders from the Western Hemisphere.
Senior administration officials stated that the United States is hosting the triennial summit only for the second time and has “wide discretion” regarding invitations. They have spent weeks having “open and honest discussions” with regional governments about the issue of inviting Cuba, Nicaragua, and Venezuela.
However, the U.S. “continues to have reservations about the absence of democratic space and human rights situation in Cuba, Nicaragua, and Venezuela.” Accordingly, Venezuela, Nicaragua, and Cuba will not be invited to this Summit,” the official said.
Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, the Mexican president, announced at a press conference that he would send Mexico’s foreign ministry to his place, just hours after he had made his threat to sabotage the summit.
Biden’s administration hoped that this week’s meeting of Western Hemisphere leaders would showcase its efforts to create what officials call “regional solution to regional challenges” in the U.S. backyard. This includes migration, which has caused a political crisis for the administration with record numbers illegal crossings at U.S.-Mexico borders.
The Biden administration’s foreign policy focus has been publicized as being heavily focused on Russia, China and Afghanistan in its first 15 months. However, officials have spent months planning to host leaders from Canada to the south tip of Chile. According to a source familiar with the planning, while the list of invited and possible boycotts has generated a lot of attention, the administration wants to shift the conversation to “strong deliverables” that the U.S. will unveil this week.
Another official said that these actions would include commitments by nations whose heads have threatened to boycott Cuba and other countries if they were not invited. The official stated that although leaders from Nicaragua, Venezuela, and Cuba were not invited to the summit, representatives of non-governmental nations from all three countries have registered to attend. He also said that the United States “recognizes the role of allies in support for inclusive dialogue”
“The summit will bring together thousands of people to discuss the most pressing shared challenges and opportunities facing our region. “We are looking forward to the chance to celebrate these links and work together to solve these problems as a region,” a senior administration official stated.
Obrador repeatedly threatened to miss the summit if the U.S. didn’t invite all Western Hemisphere nations. These threats, especially those directed at Cuba, have been commonplace around the gathering, but not always fulfilled. Obama’s efforts to normalize relations between Cuba and the United States led to an historic meeting between Raul Castro, Cuban dictator, and President Barack Obama at the 2015 summit in Panama. The Trump administration worked quickly to reverse the Obama thaw. However, President Joe Biden’s administration has only recently made incremental steps toward Obama-era moves, despite pressure from key members of his party.
Biden officials engaged in intense discussions with Mexico’s government about the summit. This included a call between Biden, Obrador and late April. Former Senator Chris Dodd (D-Conn.), a longtime friend of Biden and colleague on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has also taken an active role in these conversations.
On Wednesday, the president will travel to Los Angeles. The summit will also spotlight Vice President Kamala Harris, who is tasked with the most difficult and challenging political assignment Biden has given her: taking action to reduce the drastic increase in migration to the U.S.A from Central America.
Harris’s first major outreach was to Central American leaders. She traveled to Guatemala and Mexico exactly one year ago. This trip marked her highest-profile to date. It also launched months of work behind-the scenes.
The vice president will meet with representatives of Caribbean countries, business executives and non-governmental organizations over several days. This includes the announcement of significant private sector investments in Central America.
Biden and Harris also plan to host events outside of the official summit that will address domestic issues. Biden will sit down for a rare television interview with Jimmy Kimmel on Wednesday after his arrival in Los Angeles. He will then make remarks Friday at the Port of Los Angeles. This port has been the focal point of his administration’s efforts towards addressing supply chain problems and will also be a beneficiary of his new infrastructure law.
