U.S. Recalls Chargé d'Affaires from Nicaragua After Ortega-Murillo Regime Rejects Ambassador Pick Franceschi
The U.S. Department of State said in a statement on October 13 that the acting U.S. envoy to Nicaragua, Chargé d'Affaires Elias Baumann, has returned to Washington "for critical consultations" after Nicaraguan officials rejected the U.S. pick for ambassador, Natasha Franceschi.
The statement said the decision by co-Presidents Daniel Ortega and his wife Rosario Murillo "demonstrates the hypocrisy of their rhetoric of mutual respect and their desire to engage in political theater at the expense of the Nicaraguan people." State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott said Ortega and Murillo's rejection of Franceschi, a "highly qualified career diplomat," demonstrates their complete unwillingness to engage in productive diplomatic dialogue.
Franceschi was nominated by President Donald Trump in August and confirmed unanimously by the Senate on September 30. She has approximately 25 years of experience in the U.S. Foreign Service, holds the rank of Minister Counselor in the Senior Foreign Service, and has served in Tunisia, Slovakia, Iraq, and at the State Department.
The statement did not mention any severance of diplomatic ties, embassy closures, expulsion of officials, additional sanctions, or changes to consular services, nor did it specify when Baumann might return to Managua. The Nicaraguan Presidency did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
This marks Nicaragua's second refusal of a U.S. ambassadorial candidate: in July 2022, Managua withdrew its initial approval for Hugo Rodríguez, who had been nominated by then-President Joe Biden. The U.S. ambassador post in Managua has been vacant since 2023.
(Source: U.S. Department of State statement, as reported by Reuters)
Source: U.S. Department of State
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
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