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He Inter-American Development Bank (BID) began this Saturday the assembly to elect its president with the advisor of Donald trump, Mauricio Claver-Carone as the only candidate, in the midst of a regional controversy over the breaking of a tradition that the entity was led by a Latin American.
The 48 governors began a virtual meeting in Washington to elect the successor to the current president of the institution, the Colombian Luis Alberto Moreno.
Moreno has been in office since 2005. The next IDB president will have a five-year term with the possibility of re-election in which he will have to face the acute crisis in the region and a possible reconstruction of Venezuela.
The election was to be held in March at the institution’s annual meeting in Barranquilla, Colombia, but it had to be postponed as well as other events due to the covid-19 pandemic.
The United States – the IDB’s main shareholder with 30% – broke an unwritten tradition that governed the 60-year life of the Washington-based institution by which a Latin American led the Bank and an American held the vice presidency.
Argentina – which sought to present its current representative at the Bank, Gustavo Béliz, as a candidate, but did not ultimately run for him – announced on Thursday that he will abstain from voting.
The candidacy of an American caused irritation in Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica and Mexico, They argued that the vote – already postponed – should be postponed again since the pandemic did not allow adequate debate.
This claim was joined by the head of diplomacy of the European Union (EU), Josep Borrell, who thus recommended it to the European member countries of the IDB.
This attempt came less than two months before a very close presidential election in the United States in which Donald Trump may lose the White House to his Democratic rival Joe Biden.
Claver-Carone, a 45-year-old lawyer of Cuban descent known for his strong opposition to Havana and Venezuela, accused the countries that showed resistance of “wanting to steal the ball.”
The Chancellor of the Government of Chile, Andres Allamand, responded cataloging these statements as “aggressive” and said that they “confirm” that the election of Claver-Carone would be very “Inadequate”.
Costa Rica, which originally wanted to introduce former President Laura Chinchilla, withdrew in early September.
These countries account for about 22% of the votes, weighted according to their actions.
To win, a candidate must have the support of at least 15 of the 28 American countries and the support of a number of IDB member countries that give him a 75% majority of the voting power.
A counterweight to China’s influence
The American candidate has the free path to be elected, unless there is a massive abstention or that some country challenges the election.
The abrupt irruption of the US candidate generated surprise since Trump’s foreign policy line has been contrary to multilateralism and international institutions, as evidenced by his intention to withdraw from the World Health Organization (WHO).
But opposition to Chinese influence was stronger and Claver-Carone seeks his presidency to be a counterweight to the aggressive inflow of loans from Beijing in the region.
If elected, Trump’s top adviser for Latin America will face partisan divisions in the US Congress, which approves funds for the bank.
The IDB’s role will be central in a region devastated by the pandemic for which the International Monetary Fund forecasts a contraction of 9.4%.
It will also be capital for a eventual reconstruction of Venezuela, in the event of a change of government.
This bank is the only multilateral institution to recognize as a member a delegate from parliament and not from the government of Nicolás Maduro, which is not recognized by more than 50 countries led by the United States.
The IDB was born in 1959 within the Organization of American States (OAS) and has had four presidents: the Chilean Felipe Herrera (1960-1970), the Mexican Antonio Ortiz Mena (1970-1988), the Uruguayan Enrique Iglesias ( 1988-2005), and Moreno.
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