Peru announced on Monday that it has severed diplomatic relations with Mexico because Mexican authorities have granted asylum to former Peruvian Prime Minister Betssy Chávez, who is facing charges in Peru related to a 2022 coup attempt.

"Taking into account the repeated occasions on which the current and former presidents of that country have intervened in the internal affairs of Peru, the Peruvian government has decided today to break off diplomatic relations with Mexico," Peruvian Foreign Minister Hugo De Zela said at a press conference.

The incident adds a new chapter to the differences between the two Latin American governments.

The foreign minister said that Mexico's initiation of the asylum process was an ‘unfriendly act,’ adding to differences with the Mexican governments of Andrés Manuel López Obrador (2018-2024) and the current government of Claudia Sheinbaum.

Castillo's wife and children are in asylum in Mexico, where authorities have shown sympathy for the former Peruvian leader, who came to power with a left-wing agenda and was deposed by Parliament after announcing its dissolution in December 2022.

De Zela specified that the break with Mexico affects bilateral ties between the two countries, complicating not only diplomatic aspects but also regional cooperation.

Chávez, who was president of the Council of Ministers under Castillo, is under investigation for her involvement in the events of 7 December 2022, when Castillo issued a message announcing the dissolution of Congress and the temporary closure of constitutional institutions, which ultimately led to his removal as president.

The Peruvian Public Prosecutor's Office accuses the former official of being a co-author of the crime of rebellion against the powers of the state and is seeking a sentence of up to 25 years in prison for her.

It has also asked the judiciary, as part of a series of rules of conduct, that the former prime minister not visit any embassies or meet with foreign diplomats while the proceedings are ongoing.

Chávez is serving her sentence with restrictions following a ruling by the Peruvian Constitutional Court that declared the extension of a preventive detention measure against her, which was past its deadline, to be null and void.

However, the proceedings against her for rebellion are still ongoing, and the Public Prosecutor's Office maintains that the risk of flight is a central element of its request for imprisonment or other more stringent measures.

AP Video by Mauricio Muñoz