Installation of the Mexico-Russia friendship group is a way to sustain the ideological stance of AMLO: specialist

Last Wednesday, March 23, the Chamber of Deputies installed the so-called Mexico-Russia Friendship Group, sparking criticism from some opposition parties by highlighting the war that has been going on for a month between Russia and Ukraine.

Among the members were legislators from Morena, from the Labour Party (PT, including Gerardo Fernández Noroña and Alberto Anaya, the latter, leader of that party) and even a couple of PRI's.

The event had been postponed on March 14, out of “prudence”, after Movimiento Ciudadano protested its installation on the Political Coordination Board. However, on March 23 it was held.

During the “friendship” round, the Russian ambassador to Mexico, Viktor Koronelli, thanked the Mexican position of not joining the imposition of economic sanctions and rejecting the request for armament to Ukraine.

For her part, the Ukrainian ambassador to Mexico, Oksana Dramarétska, said that the installation of the table was “a shame”.

Meanwhile, the US Ambassador to Mexico, Ken Salazar strongly criticized the installation of this group in Congress. He said that the relationship between our country and Russia cannot be close.

“We have to be in solidarity with Ukraine and against Russia, the Russian ambassador said that Mexico and Russia are close, that can never happen, it can never happen, Ukraine is fighting for freedom, I remember that in the Second World War there was no distance between Mexico and the United States, we were united against Hitler who was killing innocent people everywhere, we cannot say 'that is happening in another side of the world', because it can affect us here in Mexico,” he warned.

Amid the controversy, the head of the US Northern Command, Glen Van Herck, assured on Thursday, March 24, that the largest number of Russian intelligence agents are in Mexico.

“I would like to point out that most of the GRU (Glavnoye Razvedyvatelnoye Upravlenie) members in the world are in Mexico at the moment. Those are Russian intelligence personnel. And they closely monitor their opportunities to have influence in the United States,” he said when he appeared before the Senate of the American Union.

In response, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador assured that Mexico “is not a colony of Russia, nor of China, nor of the United States.”

“It's a statement. We are not going to question anything, we are respectful of the free manifestation of ideas. Mexico is a free, independent, sovereign country... it must be known more and more because sometimes it seems that it is not understood enough, we must send them telegrams warning them that Mexico is not a colony of any foreign country, that Mexico is a free, independent and sovereign country. That we are not a colony of Russia, nor of China, nor of the United States,” he reiterated.

López Obrador said he had no information about the alleged presence of Russian spies, but emphasized that Mexico does not allow anyone to commit illegal activities on national soil.

The next day, Saturday, March 26, the Russian embassy in Mexico denied that it has spies in our country.

“The Russian Embassy has carefully analysed the speech of Mr. Glen D. VanHerck and his opinion has no basis about the presence of 'Russian military spies' in Mexico. Once again we can observe US propaganda that has as one of its main objectives to isolate Russia and Russian diplomats around the world through fake news,” he said through a text released on his social networks.

For the Doctor of Political Science of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), Mario Alberto Huaracha, the installation of this table is a way of sustaining the President's ideological position, he said in an interview with Infobae Mexico.

“It is a position that expresses sympathy for ways of exercising government and power, in this case Russia, but especially to counterbalance the United States, which represents the highest economic and ideological hegemony of the West,” he said.

“The group is a way of sustaining the President's ideological stance focused on non-intervention in the domestic policy of countries and the rejection of practices that he considers to be neoliberal and conservative in favor of ways that have in fact proved to be populist, ultra-nationalist, repressive and anti-progressive. It is his version of the left in foreign policy,” he said.

In the opinion of the UNAM specialist, the installation of this group is a trend of López Obrador.

“This is not new, it is a tendency of President López Obrador. In recent years, we have observed it in its position on the political, economic and social situation in several Latin American countries, characterized by having extremely authoritarian presidents and evidence of 'ways of exercising government' based on the violation of political and human rights, such as Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua. In those and other cases, the position of López Obrador, his government and party was based on respect (on the part of Mexico) for the sovereignty of other countries. In terms of workmanship, 'respect for the sovereignty of countries' means, 'we don't get into the affairs of others so they don't get into ours',” he stressed.

“With the case of Russia, there is one more 'reflection', the aversion to submission to 'the strongest' for whatever causes, here it also includes providing these countries with preferential facilities and treatment as he pointed out in the case of Spanish companies. That is why he insists that Mexico 'is no longer a colony',” said the professor at the Faculty of Political and Social Sciences of the UNAM.

When questioned whether the Morenoists and the president's allies who participated in the Mexico-Russia friendship group would be ignoring Mexico's official position at the UN on the war conflict, the fellow professor at the National Pedagogical University was blunt: yes, but they don't care.

“Yes of course (they ignore the official position), but they don't care. The diplomatic stance of countries in the Councils of international organizations is generally based on 'political correctness' and the position of countries' domestic policy is based on real politics, on the reality of how the governments of those countries function.

For our politicians, including the President, the only war that matters to them is the electoral one and the one they establish with those who since the morning conference define themselves as' adversaries'. As we have seen in recent weeks (and for more than three years), adversaries can be politicians, countries, actors, singers, academics, journalists, citizens, organizations, businessmen, the media, etc.; all those who contradict our President,” Huaracha Alarcón highlighted.

The expert in Political Science emphasized that the participation of Morena and traditional and new allies such as the PRI (on the issue of electricity reform) “indicates that the interests are in strengthening the alliance unity to obtain electoral benefits, in the background is sending the message to the United States and thirdly and beyond, concerning the conflict”, he stressed.

Mario Alberto Huaracha pointed out that should the war between Russia and Ukraine escalate and involve other countries, Mexico could be affected in economic issues.

“The position of the government creates an image of our country in the world. I suppose that if the conflict escalates to a point where it goes beyond the borders of the sides involved (Russia and Ukraine), an express international polarization would arise, in which case, the war would be between Russia and NATO. In that scenario, possible but still remote, the allies of each side will join the supports and restrictions. Mainly it would be in economic restrictions where Mexico could have effects, but it is still too early to visualize that,” he said.

When questioned whether this political rapprochement between Mexico and Russia could be exploited by other groups with “certain interests” to cause some kind of instability in Mexico, the doctor of Political Science pointed out:

“Not from groups. The instability would be in the variation in the prices of goods and products due to the global effect of the conflict on the international economy,” he emphasized.

Regarding the message of the United States Ambassador to Mexico, Ken Salazar, who clearly and directly assured that Mexico cannot support Russia, the UNAM specialist stressed that - at least for now - this is a rhetorical expression derived from the conflict.

“There are mutually beneficial trade agreements with the United States, so that statement, at least for the time being, is an expression of the rhetoric that stems from the conflict, rather than a premonition of what can happen. Neither of them (the US and Mexico) is in the best interest of tense relations, let alone break them. Dissent with the ambassador has been common in recent times,” he said.

The academician ruled out that the installation of this table could damage relations with Ukraine.

“I don't think, because we are still in the moment of the positions and none of the countries that support one side or the other, should this conflict escalate further or leave the borders of the countries involved. We have to understand that slogans such as 'everyone against all' or 'are with me or with the enemy', is part of the propaganda rhetoric that is enhanced by the images of the bombings and the victims. Images of course deplorable and condemnable in every way, but which are not typical of this 2022″.

During and after the cold war, there have been countless warlike conflicts, which unfortunately and unfortunately left hundreds of thousands of deaths and humanitarian crises in several generations of continental countries and regions, despite international treaties on peace, demilitarization, non-stockpiling, etc., in which the United States and Russia, have been active participants (direct and indirect). I think that, unfortunately, the geographical location of our country does not help us to observe this conflict in objective terms,” said Mario Alberto Huaracha.

Finally, the Doctor of Political Science considered that the allegations made by the head of the US Northern Command about the alleged presence of Russian spies on Mexican soil are merely an “expression of American rhetoric and war propaganda.”

“This statement is an expression of the rhetoric and war propaganda developed by each side. It's not easy to have evidence of that statement. The military are also politicians but they have their own language: for example, the statement of spies,” he concluded.

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