Ecuador says No More Summits of the Americas without Cuba

Ecuadorian foreign minister Ricardo Patiño said in Quito that without Cuba’s full participation there will be no Summit of the Americas in Panama next year.

In a press conference on Wednesday, the foreign minister said that there is regional consensus on the Cuba issue as it was evidenced at the recent meeting of the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR), held in Galapagos Islands and at the Forum of the Organization of American States (OAS), in Paraguay.

Ecuadorian president Rafael Correa recently reiterated that his country will not go to the Panama Summit of the Americas if Cuba is not there.

It is unacceptable holding a Summit of the Americas without Cuba, as it is also unacceptable the existence of the Organization of American States without Cuba, and Latin America cannot tolerate this situation, said Correa.

Ecuador did not attend the 2013 Summit of the Americas in protest for Cuba’s absence.