Mexico will skip US-hosted Summit of the Americas

As delegations from countries in the Western hemisphere are set to arrive in Los Angeles, California for the Summit of the Americas, Mexico’s president said Monday he would not attend the gathering at which the administration of US President Joe Biden will try to advance a vision of a “secure, middle class and democratic” region, according to the White House.

The ambitious, if broad, agenda – which is expected to include efforts to boost US leadership through economic cooperation, combating public health crises, countering climate change and stemming migration – has been overshadowed for weeks by rumblings that Washington planned to exclude Nicaragua, Cuba and Venezuela from the event, citing human rights concerns and lack of democratic rule.