Mexico appeals to the International Court of Justice to hold Ecuador accountable for the wrong committed against our country

Mexico appeals to the International Court of Justice to hold Ecuador accountable for the wrong committed against our country

• Mexico presented convincing arguments to the ICJ to establish that there is no exception to the inviolability of the immunity of embassies.
• Mexico rejects Ecuador's attempt to equate the alleged wrong of granting asylum to Jorge Glas with that of invading the Mexican Embassy.

On instructions from President Andrés Manuel López Obrador and Foreign Affairs Secretary Alicia Bárcena Ibarra, the Foreign Ministry participated in the hearings at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on Mexico's request for provisional measures in the case of the Mexican Embassy in Quito (Mexico vs. Ecuador).

The Mexican delegation, headed by Legal Advisor Alejandro Celorio Alcántara, was composed entirely of civil servants, including Mexican Foreign Service officials with extensive experience in international litigation, and those involved in Mexico's lawsuits against the negligent business practices that facilitate the illicit trafficking of arms into Mexico.

On April 30, the Mexican delegation presented oral arguments, which addressed the following points:

1. The jurisdiction of the ICJ to issue the requested measures;
2. The rights established in the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations to which Mexico is entitled, specifically the right that diplomatic premises, their furnishings and other property, archives and documents are inviolable and Ecuador must guarantees their security and protection; and
3. The urgent need to issue the measures, given the imminent risk of irreparable harm to Mexico's rights, in that Ecuador (1) created an atmosphere of distrust in the entire region; (2) has shown a continued lack of good faith in complying with its international obligations; and (3) has not provided Mexico with sufficient guarantees that it will comply with its international obligations.

On May 1, Ecuador presented its oral arguments. Ecuador challenged the arguments presented by the Mexican delegation, saying that Mexico had not negotiated a resolution of the dispute following the raid by its security forces. It called the break-in "exceptional", acknowledging that there is an obligation not to enter an embassy without permission.

The International Court of Justice will now begin its deliberations to decide, in the coming weeks, whether to impose provisional measures obliging Ecuador to take the necessary steps to protect the Mexican Embassy, its property and archives.

In the context of these hearings, Ecuador filed an application with the ICJ instituting proceedings against Mexico for alleged violations in granting political asylum to Jorge Glas. To justify the violent break-in of the Mexican Embassy in Quito, Ecuador intends to argue that Mexico allegedly granted political asylum to Mr. Glas unlawfully and, therefore, improperly used its diplomatic premises.

Mexico categorically rejects these allegations. Political asylum protects individuals whose lives, safety and freedom are at risk. It is a human right of the asylum-seeker and a sovereign right of the State granting it. But, above all, asylum has an inherently peaceful and humanitarian character, which cannot be considered as unfriendly between States.

Permitting the immunity of embassies to be violated as a countermeasure for alleged violations when granting political asylum would set a dangerous precedent for the world order.

Mexico reiterates that there is no exception to diplomatic inviolability, and that Ecuador could have tried to resolve a dispute over political asylum peacefully and without resorting to violence; for example, by filing a complaint with the International Court of Justice beforehand, not once the immunity of our embassy had been violated to remove an asylum-seeker.

Ecuador said that Mexico turned to the ICJ prematurely after the break-in of its embassy in Quito. Mexico points out that Ecuador immediately raided the embassy when it could have conducted a diplomatic dialogue and used peaceful means to resolve any dispute over the granting of political asylum to Jorge Glas.

Mexico states that Ecuador's alleged complaint regarding the granting of asylum to a person who fears for his life is in no way comparable to the wrong done to Mexico by violently breaking into its embassy and attacking the physical integrity and dignity of our diplomatic personnel, in contravention of international law and the minimum standards of coexistence among nations.

Mexico has full confidence in international law and justice, which is why it called on the ICJ in a timely manner to ensure that, with the force of law, Ecuador answers for the offense committed against our country.