Peru breaks off ties with Mexico over asylum for former PM
LIMA
This handout picture released by the Peruvian Foreign Ministry shows Peruvian Foreign Minister Hugo de Zela speaking during a press conference in Lima on Nov. 3, 2025.
Peru's government has said it cut off diplomatic relations with Mexico for granting asylum to a former prime minister being investigated over the alleged 2022 coup attempt by then-President Pedro Castillo.
"Today we learned with surprise and deep regret that former prime minister Betssy Chavez, the alleged co-author of the coup attempt by former president Pedro Castillo, is being granted asylum at the Mexican embassy residence in Peru," Foreign Minister Hugo de Zela told a press conference on Nov. 3.
"Given this unfriendly act, and considering the repeated instances in which the current and former presidents of that country have interfered in Peru's internal affairs, the Peruvian government has decided to sever diplomatic relations with Mexico today," he added.
The move drew fierce criticism from Mexico City, with the Foreign Ministry calling Peru's decision "excessive and disproportionate in response to a legitimate act by Mexico and in accordance with international law," according to a statement issued on Nov. 3.
Castillo, a former rural schoolteacher and trade unionist dubbed Peru's "first poor president," was impeached by congress in December 2022 after his attempt to dissolve Congress following a months-long standoff.
Relations between Lima and Mexico deteriorated sharply over Castillo's ouster.
Peru expelled Mexico's ambassador after Mexico granted asylum to Castillo's wife and children.
