Antony Blinken spoke to Pedro Castillo and asked him to rely on Peru to deal with the crises in Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua

The US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, expressed this Monday to the elected president of Peru, Pedro Castillo, that he hopes to count on the South American country to face “the crisis in Venezuela” and “to the deterioration of the situation in Cuba and Nicaragua “.

A few days later Pedro Castillo received the credentials, and a few hours after having assumed the presidency of Peru after what his ballot victory against Keiko Fujimori will be confirmedThe United States congratulated the Fuerza Popular candidate and called for deepening relations between the two countries.

In a message on his Twitter account, shine, argued that it was “A pleasure to speak with the elected president of Peru, Pedro Castillo. and offer my congratulations today ”.

“We are grateful for our long-standing partnership with Peru on inclusive economic growth, education for all, improving citizen security and upholding democratic principles.Blinken added.

Blinken thanked in his conversation with the left-wing leader, Peru’s “support” in the face of the crisis in Venezuela and stressed his “hope” that the new government “will continue to play a constructive role in dealing with the deterioration of the situation in Cuba and Nicaragua “.

This Monday it was confirmed that Opposition to Castillo to lead Congress after controversially leaving official list out of competition, to have a deputy without a parliamentary group at the time of the presentation of the candidacy.

The winning list to occupy the board of directors was made up of representatives of four center-right and right-wing parties, led by the lawyer María del Carmen Alva (Popular action).

Next to her will be Lady Camones (Alliance for Progress) as first vice-president, Enrique Wong (Podemos Peru) as second vice-president and Patricia Chirinos placeholder image (Avanza País) as third vice-president.

Although the board has no representative of the Fujimori Popular Force, the support of right-wing bench Keiko Fujimori, Losing presidential elections in Castillo, was the key to the triumph of the list led by Alva.

The United States has declared itself “willing” to work with Pedro Castillo, the rural teacher and union leader proclaimed president of Peru, and wished for a “successful” handover on July 28, when the country will celebrate its 200 years of independence.

The announcement came a month and a half after the election Castillo won against right-wing Keiko Fujimori, who delayed the nomination with more than a thousand protests in which he denounced without reliable evidence an alleged “fraud”.

“On behalf of the people of the United States, I congratulate the people of Peru for making their voices heard in free and fair presidential and legislative elections.noted the head of US diplomacy last week.

In addition, he praised the work of “officials, officials and volunteers, whose dedication made voting and certification possible under the difficult conditions presented by covid-19.”

Blinken stressed that the United States and Peru “have deep bonds” between their peoples, as well as shared values ​​and common interests in democracy, security, commerce and respect for human rights.

“We look forward to working with President-elect Castillo’s administration to strengthen the relationship between the United States and Peru and lead our nations to a better future.Added the Secretary of State, who appreciated the achievements of cooperation between the two countries

“We hope,” added Blinken, “for the successful transfer of power to the new administration on July 28, Peru’s bicentenary, an auspicious occasion to celebrate the country’s independence.”

In this context, he stressed that “together” they can ensure that democracy “offers greater opportunities to the citizens” of their countries.

Castillo’s proclamation came eight days before the presidential change, scheduled for July 28.

Prior to the announcement, Keiko Fujimori had predicted, in a public statement in which he admitted no questions, that he would abide by the proclamation of the National Election Jury (JNE), despite calling it “illegitimate” to continue that there had been fraud during the vote on June 6.

Pedro Castillo will take office on Wednesday in an act at the Congress of the Republic of Peru which will be attended by several leaders from the region, such as the President of Chile, Sebastián Piñera; the Colombian, Iván Duque, or the Bolivian, Luis Arce, among others.

(With information from EFE)

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