The Bolívar Palace hosted the VII Meeting of Foreign Ministers of the Alliance for Development in Democracy (ADD), in which the foreign ministers of the member countries participated: the Chancellor of the Dominican Republic, HE Roberto Álvarez, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Worship of the Republic of Costa Rica, HE Arnoldo André Tinoco, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Human Mobility of Ecuador HE Gabriela Sommerfeld and HE Javier Martínez-Acha Vásquez, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Panama. The meeting also included the participation of ministers and directors of security and intelligence establishments of the member countries.
“The challenges we are going through in the region are great, but together we are stronger,” said the Foreign Minister of Panama, Javier Martínez Acha Vásquez, in his opening remarks.
During the day, an analysis of the current state of security in the region was carried out, and irregular migration, drug trafficking, organized crime, terrorism and cybersecurity, as well as their impact on the economic development of the regions, were addressed from a transversal perspective. nations.
The importance of formulating strategies including actions to address the challenges facing the region and finding solutions to common threats was also highlighted.
The Minister of the Interior of Ecuador, HE Mónica Palencia, stated in her speech that, “We cannot build democracies without the security component.”
The meeting concluded with a joint declaration, in which the four (4) countries committed to strengthening their commitment to democracy in the region, particularly regarding the political situation in Venezuela. Similarly, they committed to strengthening cooperation between member states.
