MIAMI (AP) – The Biden administration last week turned down a request to meet with the President of El Salvador on an unannounced trip to Washington as criticism of the Central American leader among Democrats, three people said with knowledge of the decision Monday.
Nayib Bukele’s trip, unreported, came after a senior White House official warned Bukele very critically in an interview with a Salvadoran news outlet that the Biden administration expected to have “disagreements” with him.
Bukele quickly embraced former President Donald Trump’s harsh immigration policies to restrict asylum claims, which earned him a lot of American support for his harsh style of government in El Salvador, where he is popular. But like other world leaders who are friends with Trump, he faces a tough climb that turns to the Biden government, which wants to reverse this policy and has indicated that its relationship with El Salvador is being reviewed.
The president’s surprise journey amid a pandemic posed a dilemma for US policymakers. They were given little advance notice and usually avoid face-to-face meetings due to the coronavirus and because many senior positions remain vacant, said the three people, who are all in Washington and insisted on speaking anonymously in exchange for discussing internal decisions. to make.
By rejecting Bukele’s request, the Biden officials wanted to ensure that Bukele did not try to promote a meeting as a token of support for the parliamentary election later this month, where he is seeking to expand his power base, the people said. They did, however, make an exception for Ecuadorian President Lenín Moreno, who met senior Biden officials in Washington 11 days before the Andean nation’s presidential election.
Bukele insisted the trip was private and that he did not request a meeting with Biden officials.
What “president in the world will go on a trip with his wife and daughter to sit in Washington and request that arbitrary meetings be held immediately? That makes no sense ”, he said in a text message.
The three people did not say how the request for a meeting was made. But they said the decision not to meet with Bukele was deliberate.
Although the Biden administration hopes to eventually involve Bukele in its $ 4 billion plan to address the root causes of migration from Central America, it is deeply concerned about his respect for the rule of law and democracy, the people added. .
“Clearly, circumstances have changed for Bukele,” said José Miguel Vivanco, America director at Human Rights Watch in Washington. “His popularity in El Salvador does not prevent him from doing legitimate research in Washington on his reputation for human rights and respect for the rule of law.”
The Western Hemisphere section of the State Department said the Biden administration values what it sees as a strong relationship between El Salvador and the United States and will work closely with its partners to address the challenges in the region. A spokesman declined to comment further.
During the visit to Washington, Bukele met with Luis Almagro, the Secretary General of the Organization of American States, said Secretary of State Alexandra Hill, who did not accompany the president on the trip.
The OAS, which announced last year to send an observer mission to El Salvador for the Feb. 28 congressional elections, did not respond to a request for comment and made no statement on the visit. Almagro is known for regularly tweeting about his meetings with visiting dignitaries and on the same day he met Bukele, promoted his participation in a Zoom call with diplomats from Colombia.
Bukele took office in 2019 as an independent vow to save El Salvador of the deep divisions left by uncontrolled gang violence and systemic corruption in both right and left governments after the end of a bloody civil war in 1992.
According to opinion polls, an overwhelming majority of Salvadorans agree with his tough approach, which is attributed to curbing the high level of violence, and that his allies are expected to win a majority in the vote in Congress this month.
But more and more Democrats, as well as some Republicans, have criticized Bukele for his strong arm tactics, such as sending troops to encircle Congress last year to pressure lawmakers to vote on funding for the fight against the gangs.
Last weekend, two House Democrats sent Rep. Norma Torres and Rep. Albio Sires, the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs subcommittee on Latin America, wrote to Bukele urging him “not to divide in the interests of political gain.”
The letter was prompted by the Jan. 31 murder of two individuals returning from a meeting by Bukele’s opponents of the left-wing FMLN party. Police have arrested two FMLN members and a bodyguard who works as a suspect for the Ministry of Health.
Both Bukele and his opponents seized the confusing incident, which is being investigated, to mutually accuse each other of inciting political violence.
“It appears the dying parties have put their final plan into practice,” Bukele wrote in the immediate aftermath of the murders, refuting opponents’ criticism of social media that his rhetoric was responsible for the deaths. “They are so desperate not to lose their privileges and corruption.”
The Biden administration ended Trump-era bilateral agreements last week with El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala, those people seeking asylum on the US-Mexico border had to instead go to one of the countries in Central America and make their claims there.
Legislation passed last year and backed by Democrats is slowing US foreign aid to El Salvador to fund the purchase of US military equipment. The State Department is also required to make a public list within six months of corrupt individuals in Central America subject to sanctions, a move that could include some of the most powerful politicians in the region.
Juan González, senior director of the National Security Council for the Western Hemisphere, said last month that the Biden government expected to have “disagreements” with the President of El Salvador and that any leader who is unwilling to tackle corruption would not be an American ally will be considered.
González’s comments weighed additional weight because they were his first as head of White House policy on Latin America and because they were made in an interview with El Faro, a frequent target of Bukele.
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Joshua Goodman on Twitter: @APJoshGoodman