Mexico offered Cuban President Fidel Castro an olive branch on Tuesday, even as it sent Cuba's ambassador packing and defended a decision to scale back diplomatic ties with the communist island.
While Cuban ambassador Jorge Bolanos was boarding a flight bound for Havana, Mexican Foreign Secretary Luis Ernesto Derbez sent a letter to Cuba suggesting officials from both countries work together to improve their strained relationship.
"With the clear aim of getting relations between Mexico and Cuba back on track, at least in diplomatic terms,'' Derbez wrote to his Cuban counterpart, Felipe Perez Roque, "I declare my absolute [belief] that by re-establishing trust and dialogue between the two of us we can arrive at a relationship equal to our mutual needs."
Since the announcement that it was sending Cuba's ambassador home, Mexico has been quick to clarify it wasn't breaking off diplomatic relations completely. Derbez said his letter was the first step toward improving things.
After he arrived in Cuba, Bolanos was welcomed by government officials who thanked him for a job well done.
"We receive you with a profound feeling of pride and satisfaction for a job carried out with honor and dignity," Perez Roque told Bolanos after he arrived at Havana's Jose Marti International Airport.
The ousted ambassador said he felt "happy."
"I don't come distressed. I don't come defeated," he said. "I come with my head held high. I also come encouraged and inspired by the warmth of the Mexican people, this people that stands firmly by Cuba's side."
Also on Tuesday, Honduras and Nicaragua publicly criticized Cuba in what has become a growing regional outspokenness against Castro.
In Mexico, Fox made his first public comments referring to the conflict, although he didn't mention the issue directly.
In a morning speech to a labor union, the president said Mexico "will continue to have as our guide the constitutional mandate of monitoring and ensuring fulfillment of the law."
"We defend Mexico's sovereignty and dignity in whatever forum and everywhere in the world," he said to loud applause and cries of "Mexico! Mexico!" from the audience.
Interior Secretary Santiago Creel insisted that Mexico's actions were not part of an international effort to boot Castro from power.
"Absolutely not," he said, adding that Mexico's decision was "autonomous, independent."
Mexico announced late on Sunday that it was recalling its ambassador to Cuba, Roberta Lajous, and giving Bolanos 48 hours to leave the country after it accused Cuba of meddling in its affairs.
Peru also recalled its ambassador to Cuba late on Sunday after Castro insulted Peruvian President Alejandro Toledo and harshly rebuked it for supporting a UN resolution critical of Cuba's human-rights record.
Mexico said the decision to scale back relations was based on Castro's ongoing criticism of Mexico's foreign policy, including its support for the UN resolution, Cuba's comments about a political scandal in Mexico and the alleged unauthorized activities of Cuban Communist Party members in Mexico.
Like Mexico, Peru stopped short of severing diplomatic relations completely with Cuba, choosing instead to simply reduce bilateral ties to the level of charges d'affaires.
Honduras, the sponsor of this year's US-backed resolution on Cuban human rights, restored ties with Cuba in 2002, but never appointed an ambassador. On Tuesday, Honduran President Ricardo Maduro said that "for the moment" he would not do so.
Maduro also said that he had denied a request from Cuba to support a separate UN resolution asking for an investigation into prisoner treatment at Guantanamo Bay.
"If Cuba didn't comply with a UN resolution then they can't make a similar request," the president said. "And Cuba lacks the standing to make such a proposal."
Honduras also announced on Tuesday that it would grant temporary residence to 10 Cuban refugees who landed on Honduran shores last week.
Cuba has called Honduras and other Latin American nations that supported the human rights resolution "toadies" of the US. Other supporters included Chile, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic and Guatemala.
During his May Day speech on Saturday, Castro also lashed out at Nicaragua for sending troops to Iraq. Nicaragua responded on Tuesday, saying it would file a formal complaint with Castro.
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