Ecuador has recalled its ambassador to Colombia over comments related to a high-profile criminal case, sparking tensions across Latin America.
The case in question is that of former Vice President of Ecuador Jorge Glas, a leftist who is currently serving a long prison sentence for corruption.
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This week marks the two-year anniversary of the controversial police raid in which Ecuadorian authorities stormed the Mexican Embassy in Quito to arrest Glass, who had sought asylum at the diplomatic facility.
But the right-wing government of Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa, which authorized the raid, has criticized the Glass case as a violation of its country’s sovereignty.
Wednesday’s decision to recall Ambassador Arturo Felix Wong from Bogota is the latest sign of Ecuador’s cross-border conflict with its neighbor, Colombia, and its leftist President Gustavo Petro.
In a local radio interview on Wednesday, Ecuador’s Foreign Minister Gabriela Sommerfeld confirmed that her country’s ambassador to Colombia had been recalled.
He said criticism of the Glass case was unnecessary. “This is clearly an act of provocation as such messages do not come from anywhere,” he said.
His comments were similar to those of Noboa himself, who has led a months-long dispute with the Colombian government.
“This country has waited years to see justice delivered to the corrupt,” Noboa said in a social media post. Message On Tuesday.
He condemned critics such as Petro who consider Glas to be a “political prisoner” and warned that he considered such rhetoric a form of foreign interference.
“I want to say emphatically: this is an attack on our sovereignty and a violation of the principle of non-interference,” Noboa said.
His statement appears to be inspired by a series of social media posts written by Petro on the anniversary of the Mexican Embassy raid that occurred on April 5, 2024.
As a result of that episode Mexico broke its diplomatic relations with Ecuador, which remain in place to this day.
Critics described the raid as a violation of international law. Treaties such as the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations protect embassies and consulates from military and law enforcement actions without prior consent.
Glas had been taking refuge in the Mexican Embassy since December 2023, claiming he was facing political persecution in Ecuador.
Following the raid, he was sentenced to an additional 13 years in prison for misuse of public funds, in addition to prison terms for two prior corruption cases.
Glass was one of several politicians convicted as part of the Odebrecht scandal, in which government officials across Latin America were accused of taking bribes in exchange for issuing favorable contracts to certain business interests.
In 2017, Glass was sentenced to six years in prison for taking $13.5 million in bribes, and in 2020, he faced an additional eight years in prison. He has been barred from holding any public office again.
Last September, Colombia granted Glass citizenship. President Petro then called for Glass to be transferred to Colombian custody. He reiterated that request in a social media post on Monday.
Petro wrote, “I call for there to be no political prisoners in any country in the United States. It is undisputed that George Glass is a political prisoner.” First Made two posts on the topic.
In SecondPublished the next day, Petrou expressed concern about Glass’s health and well-being. The former vice president is serving his sentence in Ecuador’s maximum security prison, El Encuentro.
“Jorge Glass is a Colombian citizen and he is a political prisoner,” Petro said.
“I call on international human rights organizations to protect his rights. His health condition has now become a threat to his life; due to his imprisonment, he has not received adequate sustenance and is currently suffering from severe malnutrition and muscle loss.”
Petro said that “allowing a person to die of hunger” would be a “crime against humanity”.
The heated exchange between Petro and Noboa is part of a long-running dispute between the two leaders.
Since March alone, Noboa has imposed a 50 percent tariff on Colombia, based on allegations that it has been too lax in its fight against drug trafficking.
Meanwhile, Petro has accused Noboa of carrying out a bombing campaign near the Colombian border, resulting in the recovery of 27 charred bodies.
Noboa is leading an aggressive, military-led anti-narcotics campaign with the support of United States President Donald Trump, who has similarly criticized leftist governments like Petro for failing to crack down on drug trafficking.
Noboa and Trump have grown closer since the US president was sworn in for a second term in January 2025, and Ecuador’s policies towards regional governments and drug trafficking have mirrored US policies.
