Ecuador called its ambassador in Colombia for consultations, Chancellor Gabriela Sommerfeld announced, responding to President Gustavo Petro's comments on former Vice President Jorge Glas. Petro called Glas a "political prisoner" at risk and requested his release or handover to Colombia. Noboa countered that he is a corrupt individual accountable to Ecuador.
Ecuadorian Chancellor Gabriela Sommerfeld announced on Wednesday that the country has recalled its ambassador from Colombia over President Gustavo Petro's X post on Monday. Petro stated that Glas, convicted of corruption and held in a maximum-security prison, faces life risks from poor nutrition and medical neglect, urging Daniel Noboa to release him or transfer him citing Colombian nationality.
Noboa replied on X that labeling Glas a political prisoner attacks Ecuador's sovereignty and breaches non-intervention principles. "In prison there is a corrupt man who must answer to Ecuador," the president wrote.
Glas, vice president under Rafael Correa (2013-2017), serves sentences for illicit association in the Odebrecht case, bribery in campaign financing (2012-2016), and embezzlement after the 2016 earthquake. His defense seeks legal remedies over health decline, claims denied by Noboa's government.
The episode heightens strains between the nations, with opposing alignments: Noboa close to Washington and leftist Petro. Ecuador halted agreed technical tables and demands enhanced border security to progress on trade and energy, per the foreign ministry. Sommerfeld voiced energetic protest against interference in Ecuadorian state matters.
