The irony of the Canadian diplomat who was assaulted before the G20: "I guess the police were worried about the party"

On Tuesday afternoon, Canadian diplomat John Kirton, an expert on the G7 and G20 summits, walked around Luna Park without a hitch when two young men attacked him for burglary. The professor of political science, who had gone to get his credentials, fell to the ground, hit one of his knees and he was in shock for a few seconds. Two women who accompanied him helped the badault did not materialize. The incident was the welcome card Argentina handed him before the world leaders' summit.

Two days later, Kirton, already quieter and in the G20 press room, gave details of what had happened to him. "I was walking when two young people, who did not know where they came from, attacked me. They tried to steal my watch, my wallet and my pbadport. But they failed: I was with two women, who are part of my team. They managed to avoid it", he recognized exclusively in TN.

"I have a scratch on one of my knees. My pants broke and I had to buy another one in a gallery. "He had some recommendations to make, with some precautions, such as not wearing the wallet in the back pocket, to keep it in advance, but it happened. Always have to travel with the women to to trust, "he continued, this time with a smile.

"The street was practically deserted. I was surprised that there is little police in the place. I guess the police were worried about an upcoming football match, "he said with some irony about the suspension of River-Boca.

"I will not change my impression of Buenos Aires or Argentina because of what has happened. The Argentines with whom I spoke are great"Kirton closed.

"Cry for Argentina"

"After 31 G7 Summits, 12 G20 Summits and a BRICS Summit since 1988, my luck and the security of the host were finally exhausted. Do not cry for me, cry for Argentina, "wrote Kirton on his Twitter account, with irony but indignation, while security officials tried to demonstrate a significant deployment of forces.

The meeting of Heads of State will take place from November 30 to December 1 in a Buenos Aires restricted circulation and many dams. Public Safety Minister Patricia Bullrich has defined the operation as follows: "powerful, strong and adequate"; Hernán Lombardi, coordinator of the G20 Technical Unit, said that with the summit, "we have demonstrated great organizational capacity".

Kirton is Professor of Political Science, Director and Co-Founder of the G7 Research Group, Co-Director (with Alan Alexandroff and Donald Brean) and Founder of the G20 Research Group, Founder and Co-Director (with James Orbinski) of the Global Health Diplomacy Program. Founder and co-founder of the BRICS Research Group, all housed at the Munk School of Global Affairs at the University of Trinity College, at the University of Toronto, Canada. Since 2016, he has been Acting Director of the International Relations Program of the same institution.