The Mexican Foreign Ministry confirmed on Sunday that its embassy in Ecuador is evacuating all of its staff, and is closing indefinitely following the arrest of former Ecuadorian Vice President Jorge Glas in the embassy compound, leading to the bilateral diplomatic relations being severed.

In a statement, the Foreign Ministry said, "Mexico reiterates its condemnation of the violation of the immunity of its embassy in Quito and the aggression against its personnel. The Foreign Ministry will evacuate all diplomatic personnel and their families from Ecuador on Sunday, April 7. The Embassy of Mexico will remain closed indefinitely". 

It added that the return of diplomatic staff and respective families is being coordinated by top Mexican diplomat Alicia Barcena per instruction of Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador.

Obrador was quoted in the statement as saying, "We are looking after our diplomats; they are not alone. They have shown dignity and decorum, as seen by the attitude of Raquel Serur, our ambassador, and Roberto Canseco, deputy chief of mission at the embassy".

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The government of Mexico granted political asylum to former Ecuadorian Vice President Jorge Glas, who took refuge at the Embassy of Mexico in Quito. The government of Ecuador, under President Daniel Noboa, labelled the embassy decision as an "illicit act" and dismissed the idea of providing safe passage for Glas to leave, and prompting the government to consider Mexico's ambassador in Quito, Raquel Serur, persona non grata.

Asylum legal or illegal?

Formerly, on Friday, April 5, Ecuador noted that according to international conventions, "it is not legal to grant asylum to people convicted or prosecuted for common crimes and by competent ordinary courts."

Mexico's had complained of "harassment" after the Ecuadorian government increased police presence outside the Mexican embassy, yet the two countries had still ruled out breaking diplomatic ties. Regarding the police presence surrounding the Mexican embassy in Quito, Mexico's President said on April 5 during his daily address, "This is what fascists are like."

Glas, who held a position in the administration of leftist Rafael Correa from 2013 to 2017, sought shelter in the Mexican embassy in December last year following the issuance of an arrest warrant against him on charges of corruption.

Tensions escalated following Lopez Obrador's remarks on April 3, where he drew parallels between the 2023 election violence in Ecuador—resulting in the assassination of candidate Fernando Villavicencio—and the current crime situation in Mexico ahead of the June 2 legislative and presidential elections.

Lopez Obrador attributed the decline in popularity of leftist candidate Luisa Gonzalez and the surge of support for Noboa to violence and "manipulation" by certain media outlets.