Mexico is taking Ecuador to the top UN court over the storming of the Mexican Embassy
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Mexico is taking Ecuador to the top U.N. court Tuesday, accusing the nation of violating international law by storming the Mexican Embassy in Quito to arrest a former vice president who had just been granted asylum by Mexico.
The April 5 raid, hours after Mexico granted asylum to former Vice President Jorge Glas, spiked tensions that had been brewing between the two countries since Glas, a convicted criminal and fugitive, took refuge at the embassy in December.
Leaders across Latin America condemned the raid as a blatant violation of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.
Ecuador said Glas was wanted on corruption convictions and not for political reasons, and has argued that Mexico granting asylum to a convicted criminal was itself a violation of the Vienna convention.
Two mornings of preliminary hearings at the International Court of Justice are focused on Mexico’s request for interim orders known as provisional measures to be put in force while the case progresses through the court — a process likely to take many months.