Absences of several heads of state and government at the 9th Summit of the Americas
June 6-10, 2022, marked the ninth Summit of the Americas in Los Angeles, California. The Summit brings together the heads of state and government of the member states, where they can discuss different political aspects, affirm common values and commit to specific national and regional actions to improve the present and future challenges of the countries of the Americas.
However, the ninth Summit turned out to be one of the least attended by heads of state and government since its inception in 1994. Overall, only 22 heads of state and government attended the Summit, including U.S. President Joe Biden. Another 8 countries were represented by their foreign ministers or other diplomatic figures. On the one hand, the presidents of Mexico, Bolivia and Honduras declared that they would not attend the Summit as a protest against the White House for not inviting the presidents of Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua because of their “anti-human rights” records.
On the other hand, Alejandro Giammattei, the president of Guatemala, did not attend due to “agenda” problems, and neither did Luis Lacalle Pou, president of Uruguay, as he was ill with Covid-19. According to analysts, these absences reflect a decline in U.S. leadership or power in Latin America and the Caribbean, and, in turn, the growing importance of the People’s Republic of China in the region.