AMLO hails progressive advance in LatAm after Petro’s win in Colombia

Mexico City, Jun 20 (EFE).- Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador on Monday hailed the consolidation of a “progressive bloc” in Latin America after Gustavo Petro won the presidential runoff election in Colombia on the weekend.

At the National Palace in Mexico City, the Mexican leader, widely known as AMLO, said that he spoke with Petro by telephone and the two men agreed on the need for all countries in the Western Hemisphere to work together and create a region similar to the European Union.

“Let us complement one another with natural resources, labor strength, technology, markets. One region. What we’re proposing is a new phase, with respect to the autonomy and sovereignty of the peoples, as was the European community which then transformed itself into the European Union. That is our plan. That’s what we’re seeking,” AMLO said.

Lopez Obrador went on to say he will push his proposal for the consolidation of all Latin American countries, along with the United States and Canada, emphasizing that the nations of the hemisphere have “very good diplomats” and “very good politicians.”

“There must be the will not to exclude, to unite ourselves, to live together for the benefit of our peoples. Not to punish over ideological questions, dogmatisms, discrimination of our peoples and to seek brotherhood throughout the Americas,” he added.

The Mexican leader also emphasized that the leftist Petro’s triumph over populist Rodolfo Hernandez constitutes an “historic event,” saying that his rise to power means the conclusion of an era of “domination.”

“Thus, my happiness over what the Colombians did. It’s an example because we’re not talking about just anything. We’re talking about centuries of domination by groups to whom the people’s situation didn’t matter and we have the chance to inaugurate a new era of an authentic democracy, a government of the people, for the people and with the people,” he said.

In July 2021, at the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) summit, AMLO had proposed eliminating entities such as the Organization of American States and replacing them with a new structure similar to that of the European Union.

EFE jsm/afs/fpa/bp