QUITO, March 4 (Reuters) – Ecuador declared Cuban Ambassador Basilio Gutierrez and his diplomatic staff as “persona non grata,” the foreign ministry said on Wednesday, giving them 48 hours to leave the country.
Authorities did not explain why President Daniel Noboa’s government made the decision, but cited Article 9 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.
The ministry did not address whether the move implied a formal break in diplomatic relations with Havana.
Ecuadorean police and military personnel were seen patrolling the area outside the Cuban embassy in Quito, according to Reuters witnesses.
A press officer at the Cuban embassy told Reuters they could not comment on the matter.
(Reporting by Alexandra Valencia, Editing by Daina Beth Solomon)
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