Mexico Russia© Provided by The Associated Press
MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico’s president on Monday defended the participation of a contingent of Russian soldiers in a military parade over the weekend.
The presence of the Russian contingent in the Independence parade Saturday drew criticism because of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Mexico has condemned the invasion but has adopted a policy of neutrality and has refused to participate in sanctions as it continues to buy 2020-vintage COVID vaccines from Russia.
Mexican Air Force planes release smoke trails representing the colors of the Mexican national flag during the Independence Day military parade, in Mexico City, Saturday, Sept. 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)© Provided by The Associated Press
President Andrés Manuel López Obrador noted that a contingent from China also participated, and said that all the countries Mexico has diplomatic relations with were invited.
Cmd. Luis Cresencio Sandoval, from left, Mexico’s President Andrés Manuel López Obrador and Adm. Rafael Ojeda Durán, Secretary of the Navy, review the troops before the start of the annual Independence Day parade in the capital’s main square, the Zocalo, in Mexico City, Saturday, Sept. 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)© Provided by The Associated Press
López Obrador acknowledged the issue became “a scandal,” but attributed it to his ongoing spat with the news media, which he believes is against him.
“The Chinese were also in the parade, and there wasn’t so much outcry,” López Obrador said, noting a Russian contingent had participated in the past, although at times when that country was not actively invading its neighbor.
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“All the countries that Mexico has diplomatic relations with were invited,” he said.
Members of the Armed Forces wait for the start of the annual Independence Day military parade in the capital’s main square, the Zocalo, in Mexico City, Saturday, Sept. 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)© Provided by The Associated Press
Some members of López Obrador’s Morena party have publicly expressed affection for Russia even after the invasion, and López Obrador has frequently criticized the United States for sending arms to Ukraine.
López Obrador’s administration has continued to buy Russia’s Sputnik COVID vaccine and intends to use it as a booster shot later this year, along with Cuba’s Abdala vaccine.
Experts have questioned the use of those vaccines, along with Mexico’s own Patria vaccine, as a booster for new variants, because all of them were designed in 2020 to combat variants circulating at the time.
Members of the Mexican Armed Forces shout motivational slogans prior to the start of the Independence Day military parade, in the capital’s main square, the Zocalo, in Mexico City, Saturday, Sept. 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)© Provided by The Associated Press
Members of the Mexican Armed Forces dressed in Mexican Revolution period uniforms, march in the Independence Day military parade, in the capital’s main square, the Zocalo, in Mexico City, Saturday, Sept. 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)© Provided by The Associated Press
Fireworks go off to represent the colors of the Mexican national flag during the annual Independence Day military parade in the capital’s main square, the Zocalo, in Mexico City, Saturday, Sept. 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)© Provided by The Associated Press
Members of the Mexican Armed Forces march during the annual Independence Day military parade in the capital’s main square, the Zocalo, in Mexico City, Saturday, Sept. 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)© Provided by The Associated Press
Heroic Military Academy cadets march in the annual Independence Day military parade in the capital’s main square, the Zocalo, in Mexico City, Saturday, Sept. 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)© Provided by The Associated Press