MEXICO CITY — Russian President Vladimir Putin has been invited to attend Claudia Sheinbaum's presidential inauguration in Mexico, which was scheduled for Oct. 1.
Mexico was the first country in Latin America to recognize the Soviet Union, 100 years ago, in 1924.
However, this long standing relationship is now at a crossroads, with the United States closely watching Mexico's next moves.
“Mexico is at a position right now to decide whether they want to align their values closer to the United States or do they want to align more so with Russia,” explained Alexandra Helfgott with the Mexico Institute at the Wilson Center. “I do think what's different now is that we're at a real inflection point, with a lot of talk about nearshoring.”
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Mexico purchased the Sputnik V vaccine. Last year, a Russian delegation participated in a military parade in Mexico, raising eyebrows amid Russia's ongoing conflict with Ukraine.
“It would definitely impact in a negative way the opportunities there might be for the United States and Mexico to collaborate,” Helfgott added.
Ukraine has urged Mexico to arrest Vladimir Putin, if he turns up President Sheinbaum’s inauguration.
— James Waterhouse (@JamWaterhouse) August 8, 2024
The International Criminal Court, which Mexico is a member of, issued an arrest warrant for Russia’s leader last year.
Yet, according to Russian media, he’s been invited. pic.twitter.com/2HxV97c4Q4
Putin congratulated Sheinbaum on her election. But it was not clear if he would accept the invitation.
On Aug. 8, Reuters reported that incumbent Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador rejected a request from Ukraine's embassy to Mexico to arrest Putin if he attends the inauguration ceremonies.
The U.N.'s International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Putin in March 2023. NPR explained that it involved "accusations that Russia has forcibly taken Ukrainian children." Russia is not a party to the ICC but Mexico is.
Mexico's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said formal invitations for Sheinbaum’s inauguration will be sent to 208 heads of state and 34 international organizations, with no special treatment for any country.
Peru and Ecuador were left out, likely a result of strained diplomatic relations.
NPR explained that in December 2023, former Ecuadorean vice president Jorge Glas, who was convicted on corruption charges, fled to the Mexican Embassy in Quito, the capital city. On April 5, soon after Mexico granted Glas asylum, Ecuadorean police raided the embassy and arrested him. Outraged Mexican officials took Ecuador to the U.N.'s International Court of Justice, and the case is pending.
Mexico's relations with Peru, Ecuador's southern neighbor, were also strained this year. In April, Mexico announced that Peruvians now needed a visa again to visit Mexico. In a statement on the government's website, Mexican officials hoped that requirement — waived since 2012 — would ease the flow of "irregular migrants traveling through Mexico to the north of the continent, which has created a social emergency."
