Mexico's president has claimed the leftist candidate in Colombia's presidential race faces a dirty war by conservatives, leading the Colombian government to tell President Andrs Manuel Lpez Obrador Friday to stay out of its domestic politics.
Lpez Obrador makes a big point of saying he doesn't interfere in other countries' internal affairs, and has used that as an excuse to avoid criticizing non-democratic regimes like Nicaragua and Cuba.
But on Friday Lpez Obrador blasted the opposition to front-running presidential candidate, the leftist Gustavo Petro. Lpez Obrador claimed Petro faces a scare campaign, trying to depict him as dangerous radical, something similar to a campaign used against Lpez Obrador in a failed presidential bid in 2006.
I want to say I'm sending a hug to Petro, Lpez Obrador. Why a hug? Because he is facing a dirty war of the most cowardly and undignified kind, everything we suffered in Mexico. All the conservatives are united, unethically."
Colombia's foreign relations ministry shot back on its social media accounts, saying the Mexican president's comments were an offensive interference in our country's internal affairs.
We ask him to respect the autonomy of the Colombian people to choose their next president without interferences that try to influence voters, the ministry wrote.
Last week Colombian voters chose Sen. Petro, a former rebel, to run in a second round against real estate tycoon Rodolfo Hernndez, an outsider populist businessman.
Petro led the field of six candidates Sunday with just over 40% of the votes, while Hernndez, who has no close ties to any political parties, finished second with more than 28%.
(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
You’ve hit your limit of {{free_limit}} free articles this month.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
Already subscribed? Log in
Subscribe to read the full story →
Quarterly Starter
₹900
3 Months
₹300/Month
Smart Essential
₹2,700
1 Year
₹225/Month
Super Saver
₹3,900
2 Years
₹162/Month
Renews automatically, cancel anytime
Here’s what’s included in our digital subscription plans
Access to Exclusive Premium Stories Online
Over 30 behind the paywall stories daily, handpicked by our editors for subscribers


Complimentary Access to The New York Times
News, Games, Cooking, Audio, Wirecutter & The Athletic
Business Standard Epaper
Digital replica of our daily newspaper — with options to read, save, and share


Curated Newsletters
Insights on markets, finance, politics, tech, and more delivered to your inbox
Market Analysis & Investment Insights
In-depth market analysis & insights with access to The Smart Investor


Archives
Repository of articles and publications dating back to 1997
Ad-free Reading
Uninterrupted reading experience with no advertisements


Seamless Access Across All Devices
Access Business Standard across devices — mobile, tablet, or PC, via web or app