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Ecuador has taken a decisive step by declaring Cuban Ambassador Basilio Antonio Gutiérrez García and the entire Cuban diplomatic mission in Quito as personae non gratae. The government has ordered them to leave the country within 48 hours, marking a significant diplomatic move.
While the Ecuadorian government has yet to elaborate on the exact reasons for this expulsion, it did cite Article 9 of the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. This article permits a nation to declare foreign diplomats unwelcome, without the need for justification. Consequently, Ambassador Gutiérrez García, along with all Cuban diplomatic, consular, and administrative personnel in Ecuador, faces a 48-hour deadline to exit the nation.
Following this announcement, President Daniel Noboa released a video on social media that has garnered attention from both local and international media. The footage reportedly shows Cuban embassy staff burning documents on the rooftop of the embassy, a scene President Noboa humorously referred to as “a paper barbecue.” The Associated Press has confirmed witnessing the incident.
The leftist media outlet Telesur reported that the expulsion affects not only Ambassador Gutiérrez García but also a range of diplomatic staff. This includes Minister Counsellor Samuel Bibilonia Ballate, Consul Vladimir González Fernández, First Secretary Ivette Franco Senen, Press Attaché Sonia García, and all other secretaries, civilian attachés, and Cuban embassy personnel in Ecuador.
The Government of Ecuador reaffirms its commitment to respect international law and defend the highest national interests.
Moments after the Foreign Ministry issued the announcement, President Daniel Noboa published a video on social media that, according to local and international outlets, contains footage of Cuban embassy personnel burning documents atop the embassy’s roof. President Noboa described the video as “a paper barbecue.” The Associated Press noted that it witnessed the burning.
According to the left-wing propaganda network Telesur, the list of expelled Cuban diplomatic personnel alongside Ambassador Gutiérrez García includes Minister Counsellor Samuel Bibilonia Ballate, Consul Vladimir González Fernández, First Secretary Ivette Franco Senen, Press Attaché Sonia García, and every other secretary, civilian attaché, and member of the Cuban embassy.
Local outlets reported that, in addition to expelling the Cuban diplomats from Ecuador, President Noboa signed a decree on Wednesday ceasing José María Borja López’s functions as Ecuador’s ambassador to Havana, a position he had reportedly held since 2021.
The Cuban communist regime rejected Ecuador’s decision to expel its diplomats “in the strongest terms” in a statement issued by its Foreign Ministry. According to the Cuban regime, Ecuador’s Foreign Ministry informed Cuba of its decision through a diplomatic Note Verbale, describing it as an “unfriendly and unprecedented act that significantly damages the historic relations of friendship and cooperation between both countries and peoples.”
“The Ministry categorically reaffirms that the staff of the Cuban Embassy in Quito, as established by the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, has strictly complied with Ecuador’s laws and regulations without interfering in the internal affairs of that State,” the statement read in part.
The communist regime claimed that it “does not seem coincidental” that Ecuador decided to expel the Cuban diplomats from the country amid the “intensification” of the United States’ “aggression” against Cuba and claimed that the U.S. is allegedly pressuring other countries in the region to join its purported policy. The Cuban regime justified its accusations within the context of an upcoming “Shield of the Americas” Summit that President Donald Trump will host in Florida on March 7.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt explained this week that the Summit’s aim is to to promote “freedom, security, and prosperity in our region.” President Daniel Noboa is among the region’s U.S.-allied heads of state who were invited to the upcoming event, as were Argentina’s Javier Milei, El Salvador’s Nayib Bukele, Paraguay’s Santiago Peña, and others. Noboa confirmed his participation at the upcoming event this week.
“Cuba is convinced that the Ecuadorian people will defend the bonds of solidarity and brotherhood with Cuba,” Cuba’s Foreign Ministry wrote.
Christian K. Caruzo is a Venezuelan writer and documents life under socialism. You can follow him on Twitter here.