Nicaragua withdraws approval of U.S Ambassador nominee

Nicaragua has withdrawn its approval of Hugo Rodriguez as Ambassador nominee to the United States.

In a statement released on Thursday, the Nicaraguan government said the decision follows Hugo Rodriguez’s criticism of Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega’s regime.

“The government of Nicaragua, in use of its powers and in the exercise of its national sovereignty, immediately withdraws the approval granted to the candidate Hugo Rodríguez,” Nicaraguan Foreign Minister Denis Moncada said in a statement.

Moncada added that Rodriguez could not interfere in Nicaragua’s internal political affairs after the nominee stressed the United States will continue to press for the return of democracy to Nicaragua.

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Rodriguez, who was set to replace current U.S. Ambassador to Nicaragua Kevin Sullivan, told a U.S. Senate hearing earlier in the day that as ambassador, he would “support using all economic and diplomatic tools to bring about a change in direction in Nicaragua”.

Nicaragua shot back following Rodriguez’s comments, which included calling a decision to potentially remove Nicaragua from the CAFTA-DR trade pact “something we have to seriously consider,” saying his remarks were “interfering and disrespectful.”

Zainab Sa’id