Former Peruvian Foreign Minister Ana Cecilia Gervasi, during a press conference.SEBASTIAN CASTANEDA (Portal)
“Every time you go outside, you’re not going for a walk,” Dina Boluarte said shortly after receiving approval from Congress for her fourth foreign trip since taking over the Peruvian presidency: a tour of the United States as part of the Leaders Alliance for Economic Prosperity (APEP) Summit. In fact, the president spent four days in Washington and Maryland last week. His visit was controversial for two reasons: he stated at the event that “Peru is a country that is calm and at peace” after Pedro Castillo’s failed coup on December 7, 2022, and his frustrated meeting with Joe Biden, the President of the United States.
Boluarte justified his trip with an agreed meeting with his American counterpart and emphasized that his aim was to “position the country in the global spotlight” and thus attract “sustainable investments”. However, the meeting last Friday remained a mirage: While the Peruvian government reported on the announced meeting – although without specifying the exact time and place – the name of the Peruvian president was conspicuous by its absence from the official presidential agenda. Hours later, the executive released several photos of Boluarte next to Biden in one of the White House hallways. Footage that showed a chance meeting without the formalities of the case. However, no allusive image was published on the North American government’s social networks.
Amid a wave of criticism, the State Department released a statement attempting to obscure the situation and insisting that leaders were still able to talk about some of the most important issues affecting both nations. “[La cita] It was not carried out according to the protocol characteristic of bilateral meetings because the times were short (…) They could talk about issues such as migration and the fight against drug trafficking,” the document says. Congressional representatives from various groups immediately called on the government to respond forcefully to an event that was described as an “international disgrace.”
Back in Lima, Foreign Minister Ana Cecilia Gervasi assured that the bilateral meeting had been confirmed by the White House and that it had even decided on the format, which is why she denied any negligence on the part of her department. “I firmly certify that all the information provided to the Congress of the Republic as part of the request for authorization to travel to the President of the Republic to Washington was truthful and supported by the agreements reached with the authorities of the United States,” it said release in another.
Gervasi asked to meet with the Congressional Foreign Relations Commission and make his statements in these cases; However, his request was rejected and he instead had to appear at an extraordinary plenary session that Tuesday afternoon. “It must be known in the plenary session and explained in detail, as the state representation has granted it with a large majority in accordance with the principle of good faith,” the letter says.
Against this background, Gervasi resigned from the Foreign Ministry this Monday, surprisingly and without self-criticism. Rather, he emphasized what, in his opinion, are the achievements of the management: overcoming the tensions against him as a result of the December 7 coup and that “Peru is today a respected country and fully integrated into the international context.” Referring to Dina Boluarte told Gervasi: “I will continue to work with you and with Peru within the scope of the responsibilities that I must assume in my role as a career diplomat.”
The head of the Council of Ministers, Alberto Otárola, spoke about Gervasi’s departure, emphasizing “his efficient management in difficult times.” “Obviously, his resignation is due, among other things, to events that are known to everyone, but which mean the end of a process and a leadership in the Foreign Ministry. This will be completed with the appointment of her successor,” Otárola reported from the palace.
The failure of her meeting with President Biden represents a new scandal for Dina Boluarte: an investigation by the Sunday program Cuarto Poder has revealed that a district mayor of the Cajamarca region received 20 million soles ($5.3 million) for project investments shortly after the meeting in Lima with Nicanor Boluarte, brother of the head of state. “He is completely free to receive whomever he wants. Have it examined. “My brother will know how to defend himself before the Ministry of State against this disgrace that they tried to invent for him,” Boluarte reasoned.
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