Luis Rodolfo Abinader has been sworn in as President of the Dominican Republic following his election victory last month.
The 53-year-old businessman, who had never held an election, won a four-year term on July 5, ending a 16-year run by a center-left party.
He finished second in the 2016 presidential election.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was among those present at Sunday’s services in Santo Domingo.
His trip came two days after the Dominican Republic was the only country on the 15-member UN Security Council to support a US resolution to define an arms embargo against Iran.
Blessed to attend President @LuisAbinaderthe inauguration mass at the Cathedral of the Basilica. I’m optimistic about this chapter in the US-Dominican Partnership. I pray for our leadership, that we make progress towards a calmer and more prosperous region. pic.twitter.com/YZ3T8sK1Oh
– Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) August 16, 2020
“This election sounds like an example to other peoples of the power of democracy and what is possible if countries prioritize the wishes of their people,” Pompeo tweeted after the inauguration of Abinader, saying he was “optimistic about this chapter in US-Dominican Partnership ‘.
The election in the Dominican Republic took place when the coronavirus pandemic spread across the Caribbean nation of about 10.5 million people.
Abinader himself had spent weeks before the elections in isolation after a positive test for the virus, and the vote itself was postponed from May due to COVID-19.
Tensions of US Iran
Relations between the US and Iran have further disappeared since President Donald Trump withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal in 2018, which saw Iran limit its nuclear capabilities in exchange for relief from sanctions.
The US has since implemented a policy of maximum sanctions against Tehran.
After the Security Council’s failed bid, Trump said he would pursue the sanctions via the so-called “snapback” mechanism described in the deal.
EU officials have since said because the US is no longer a party to the deal, they can not force the reinstatement of sanctions by the US.
SOURCE:
Al Jazeera and news agencies
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