ASUNCION, Paraguay — Paraguay’s new government battled a wave of criticism Sunday as several of the nation’s closest allies condemned the dismissal of President Fernando Lugo by lawmakers, some calling it a congressional coup.
Argentina’s Foreign Ministry announced Sunday that Paraguay had been suspended from the Mercosur trade bloc, issuing a joint resolution by member nations expressing “their most energetic condemnation of the rupture of democratic order” in Paraguay.
The statement also said Paraguay would be suspended from a Mercosur summit to start today in Mendoza, Argentina.
Earlier Sunday, former Vice President Federico Franco, who was sworn in as president after Lugo’s ouster, said newly appointed Foreign Minister Jose Felix Fernandez would represent Paraguay at the summit.
“He will take charge of seeking to solve the discrepancies with countries that are our neighbors and friends,” Franco said after attending Mass.
Lugo had also said earlier Sunday that he planned to attend the summit and would hand over the rotating presidency of another regional bloc, Unasur, to Peru next week, months before it is due to switch in November.
“I will not collaborate with Franco’s government because it is bogus. It has no legitimacy,” Lugo said. Earlier he denounced his ouster as a “parliamentary coup.”
Two of his Cabinet ministers also announced the establishment of an alternative continuation government to attend to matters of state.
All three other Mercosur members had reacted with alarm to Lugo’s removal, and the fact that the Senate’s impeachment trial lasted just five hours, giving the president little time to mount a defense. Brazil and Argentina announced they were calling their ambassadors home, and Uruguay also expressed concern.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said his government will cut off fuel sales to the country, in addition to pulling out its ambassador. He said Venezuela would not recognize the new government.
His decision to cut oil shipments could hurt Paraguay, which has received increasing quantities of Venezuelan oil since 2004. Paraguay currently owes Venezuela’s state oil company Petroleos de Venezuela SA nearly $300 million, out of about $400 million in total debts to oil suppliers.
Paraguay’s new government downplayed the Argentine announcement, noting that the last ambassador, Rafael Roma, had already left three months ago after finishing his diplomatic assignment.
Franco is to serve out the rest of Lugo’s term, which ends in August 2013. His government has been recognized by Germany, Canada and Spain.
Information for this article was contributed by Belen Bogado, Christopher Toothaker and Ian James of The Associated Press.
Front Section, Pages 4 on 06/25/2012