Her foreign minister Russia, Sergei Lavrovflew yesterday Wednesday afternoon from Nicaragua for Cuba after only a four-hour visit, during which he met with President Daniel Ortega.

Arriving from Venezuela at noon, the head of Russian diplomacy flew from Managua to Cuba about four hours later, the last stop on his Latin American tour, which also included Brazil.

“The West, under the auspices of countries like the US (…) is trying to spread its hegemony through conflicts like the Ukrainian one,” Mr. Lavrov told the cameras before leaving.

“Brothers-Peoples”

Rosario Murillo, vice president and wife of Mr. Ortega, praised Mr. Lavrov’s visit to Nicaragua, saying the country welcomes him “warmly” as a representative of “fraternal peoples” who “believe in peace.”

In addition to President Ortega, the Russian Foreign Minister met with his colleague Denis Moncada, Finance Minister Ivan Acosta and Presidential Adviser on Investment, Trade and Cooperation Laureano Ortega Murillo, the son of the presidential couple, Ms. Murillo added.

📸 #Family photo: Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia Sergey #lavrovMinister of Foreign Affairs of Nicaragua Denis #moncada and Special Representative of the President of Nicaragua for Russia Laureano #Ortega 🇬🇧🤝🇳🇮

📍 Managua, April 19, 2023#RussiaNicaragua pic.twitter.com/gBtPYahCmc

— MFA of Russia 🇷🇺 (@mfa_russia) April 19, 2023

Messrs. Ortega and Lavrov, in part of their talks attended by cameras, denounced the US sanctions imposed yesterday on three Nicaraguan judges who decided to strip the citizenship of 316 dissidents whom Mr. Ortega calls “terrorists.”

“Some high-ranking government officials are now facing sanctions, but this will not scare them, it does not bother us at all,” President Ortega said.

Lavrov calls for unity against the “blackmail” of the West

The day before in Caracas, Mr. Lavrov called for “unity” to fight “blackmail”, Western sanctions.

Russia is an important ally of Nicaragua, supplying it with wheat, public transport buses, cars used as taxis, Sputnik vaccines against Covid-19 and more. goods.

Moscow is also offering its cooperation in setting up an anti-drug training center as well as technical and military support.

Nicaragua and Russia resumed economic and military cooperation in 2007 when Daniel Ortega returned to power.

Like Russia, Nicaragua has faced a series of Western sanctions since the bloody crackdown on an opposition uprising in 2018, when Managua witnessed an attempted “coup d’état” from abroad, and after his re-election for a fourth consecutive term in 2021 following an election process, in which he met with little resistance, since all serious opposition candidates were either imprisoned or sent into exile.

^{Source: APE-MEB, AFP, dpa.}