Latin American leaders blast Biden at Americas summit

US President Joe Biden has come under open criticism by Latin American leaders as he hosts a week-long Summit of the Americas in Los Angeles, California.

Speaking on the first day of the Summit on Thursday, Biden, who excluded the leftist leaders of Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela from the Summit of Americas prompting the leaders of Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador along with Haiti, to boycott the event, said his administration was committed to helping Latin America and the Caribbean recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, tackle irregular migration and improve living standards.

US leadership bid dealt setback as Americas leaders snub invitation

US President Joe Biden’s bid to reassert leadership in Americas where mistrust of the US runs deep is dealt a blow as several south and central American countries opt to stay away from a summit in Los Angeles.

However, Biden watched on and even applauded as Latin American leaders lashed out at him for Washington's discriminating foreign policy, excluding some Latin American countries from the Summit.

Just moments after he had delivered his opening remarks, claiming the future of the Western Hemisphere should be one of democracy, Belize's leader, PM John Briceno insisted that it was "incomprehensible" that three countries were not invited.

"The future of the Western Hemisphere is a question for all of the countries of this hemisphere. Irrespective of our size, our GDP, our system of governance -- we all have a shared interest in a sustainable, resilient and equitable future," he said, adding that it is "inexcusable that all countries of the Americas are not here and the power of the summit (is) diminished by their absence."

Briceno said the fact that any Latin American country not being invited to the Americas Summit was "incomprehensible"

Briceno said not inviting Venezuela, in particular, was "unforgivable".

Venezuela’s President Maduro in Tehran on two-day official visit

The Venezuelan president will meet his Iranian counterpart and participate in a meeting of high-ranking officials from the two countries.

Briceno also described the decades-long US economic blockade on Cuba as "un-American" and "an affront to humanity."

The half-century US pressure campaign against Cuba is a "crime against humanity," he said.

Argentina's President, Alberto Fernandez, also criticized Biden for his selective approach in attempting to sow division among Latin American countries, insisting that dialog "is the best way to promote democracy" in countries.

"Being the host country of the summit doesn't grant the ability to impose a right of admission on member countries of the continent," Fernandez noted.

"I am sorry that all of us, who should have been here, are not present," Fernandez said.

"We definitely would have wished for a different Summit of the Americas. The silence of those who were absent is calling to us," he added.

Following these criticisms, the US president returned to the podium and made the distorted claim that "what I heard was almost unity and uniformity."

The Summit of the Americas was hit by discord even before it began.

Failure before start

This week, Mexico's President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador slammed Washington for its policy of exclusion, warning Washington that it needed to change its desire to dominate the world.

“There cannot be a Summit of Americas if not all of the continent's countries participate,” Lopez Obrador said on Monday.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro commended the Mexican president for standing up against the US, choosing not to attend the Summit.

Maduro praised Lopez Obrador for his “courage and clarity”, saying the US government’s decision to exclude three countries is an “act of discrimination”, which ensures that “the summit will fail.”

The Summit of the Americas aim is to reach a "Los Angeles declaration" of cooperation with the purposed of countering China's growing global clout.

US officials look down on Latin American leaders, seeing them as "America's Backyard" tenants. 

Maduro in Iran

As the Summit of Americas kicks off in a dispute between Biden and the Latin American leaders attending the event, Maduro arrived in Tehran to cinch new and better deals.

Due to the US economic pressures, both revolutionary nations of Iran and Venezuela have gained strength and become self-sufficient in many fields.

The two countries have great close cooperation aimed at neutralizing the impact of illegal US sanctions, particularly in the energy sector.

Iran’s oil minister meets Venezuela's Maduro, discusses energy cooperation

Iran’s oil minister Javad Owji met with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in Caracas on Monday and discussed ways to expand energy cooperation between the two countries.

Iran has provided Venezuela with the equipment that Caracas needed in the country's oil refineries. Venezuela has also received fuel and heavy oil from Iran.

Last month, Iran’s oil minister Javad Owji met with Maduro in Caracas to discuss further ways to expand energy cooperation between the two countries.

Maduro said that he aimed to “deepen the ties of brotherhood and cooperation (with Iran), (especially) in energy matters".

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