Greetings, dear readers! Today we have a juicy article that will make you laugh and forget about all your worries. So, the grinning government in recent months was thinking about sending Soviet-designed MI-17 helicopters to Ukraine. And guess what? The United States supported this idea! Who would have thought that the US and the USSR had something in common other than their love for acronyms?
Now, hold your breath, folks! Ecuador would have joined the party and become the first Latin American country to send weapons to Kyiv. Wow, we’ve got some trendsetters over here! But, alas, it’s not clear from the leaked documents whether Ecuador followed through with it or chickened out.
As expected, Ecuador’s Foreign Ministry denied any negotiations with Ukraine on Thursday, saying that “a donation of military goods and supplies is not mentioned in the Ecuadorean legislation, so an operation of these characteristics would be impossible.” Hmm, sounds like someone forgot to read the manual!
According to Juan Carlos Herrera, an international law professor in Quito with a focus on Russia and Ukraine, Ecuador’s political and economic relationship with Russia grew close under the presidency of Rafael Correa. It’s good to have friends in high places, right? But things changed quickly when the war in Ukraine began in February 2022. Guillermo Lasso, Ecuador’s current president, condemned Russia’s invasion and expressed his full support for President Zelensky of Ukraine in a phone call last June. Ouch, that must have hurt!
Despite their past friendship, Russia wasn’t pleased with Ecuador’s antics. In a leaked analysis labeled “top secret” and dated February of this year, U.S. intelligence officials wrote that the Russian military recommended suspending economic ties with Ecuador if the helicopter transfer occurred. Yikes, that escalated quickly!
At least three of Latin America’s largest countries – Argentina, Brazil, and Colombia, all led by leftists – have refused to send weapons to Ukraine, with leaders arguing that they will not take sides in the war. Oh, come on, guys, where’s your sense of adventure? Don’t you want to join the cool kids’ club?
Vladimir Rouvinski, a political scientist at Icesi University in Colombia who studies Russian relations with Latin America, said that Latin American countries were trying to stay out of the conflict “because they are afraid.” Looks like someone needs a confidence boost!
According to the leaked U.S. intelligence assessment, Ecuador was hoping to send its aging MI-17 helicopters to Ukraine and persuade the United States to provide alternative aircraft. Ecuadorean officials had asked for U.S. support for providing the Soviet-era helicopters to Kyiv. Hmm, looks like someone’s trying to pass on their old toys to someone else.
In conclusion, our dear readers, Ecuador might or might not have sent those helicopters to Ukraine, and we’ll never know for sure. But one thing’s for sure – geopolitics can be a hilarious (and unpredictable) mess, and we’re here for it!
Serious News: nytimes
