Odebrecht case causes diplomatic rift between Colombia and Guatemala

The governments of Colombia and Guatemala entered an unexpected diplomatic conflict this week, after Guatemala’s Prosecutor’s Office made criminal allegations against Colombia’s Defense Minister Ivan Velásquez on January 16. 

The office accused Mr. Velásquez of “illegal, arbitrary, and abusive actions” during his time as the head of the International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG, in Spanish) between 2013 and 2019.

Guatemala argues that the former prosecutor used his role in the United Nations-backed task force to irregularly endorse a protected witness deal with three former Brazilian executives linked to a bribery scandal involving Brazil’s infamous construction company Odebrecht.

Odebrecht-related corruption investigations have heavily influenced Latin American politics in the last decades, incriminating several high-ranking officials. But many of these legal procedures were haunted by accusations of political manipulation and improper use of judicial procedures, something which Guatemala is now arguing also took place in their country. 

In addition to Mr. Velásquez, who as of today was only targeted with unspecified “legal actions,” Guatemala issued arrest warrants against its former Prosecutor General Thelma Aldana, the Prosecutor’s Office Secretary-General Mayra Véliz, lawyer Juan Pablo Carrasco, and David Gaitán — who worked with Mr. Velásquez at the CICIG.

Ms. Aldana, who also teamed up with the CICIG during her tenure, fled to the U.S., where she was...