Opposition lawmakers call for U.S. ambassador to be declared persona non grata and question foreign minister's tone

A group of opposition deputies called on Foreign Minister Francisco Pérez Mackenna to "fulfill his constitutional duties" and declare the U.S. Ambassador to Chile, Brandon Judd, persona non grata. Through a letter signed by 14 deputies ranging from the Communist Party (PC) to the Christian Democracy (DC), they expressed "deep concern" over the minister's tone in response to Judd's new questioning of the sovereignty of the Strait of Magellan. It was last Wednesday that Judd stated "there is no Antarctica that belongs to Chile" during his participation in Global Trade Day 2026, organized by CSAV. In response, the opposition parliamentarians indicated that Pérez Mackenna's "passive" stance puts "at risk Chile's sovereignty and its image abroad as an independent and sovereign state." Opposition deputies demand declaring the U.S. ambassador persona non grata and question the minister's tone. Pablo Vásquez R. Likewise, they accused Judd of openly interfering "in the internal affairs of our country, sovereign decisions of the Chilean state, and matters related to our strategic and territorial interests." Faced with the "succession of pronouncements" on Chile's internal decisions, the parliamentarians accused the minister of failing to fulfill his constitutional duty to defend national sovereignty by promoting Chile's accession to the so-called Shield of the Americas. "Faced with these serious violations, it falls to a sovereign state to declare Ambassador Judd persona non grata, in accordance with the provisions of Article 9, numeral 1 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations," they stated in the letter. Likewise, the legislators accused the minister of failing to provide sufficient information about the accession to the Shield of the Americas and its potential implications for national sovereignty during the interpellation on September 28. The remarks about Chilean sovereignty in Antarctica opened a new front within the Foreign Ministry following Pérez Mackenna's interpellation and the repeated controversies the ministry has faced in recent months. Thus, the parliamentarians demanded that Pérez Mackenna fulfill his constitutional duties and deliver to the Chamber the records of the agreement. In that regard, the statement was signed by Luis Cuello (PC), Nelson Venegas (PS), Nathalie Castillo (PC), Patricio Pinilla (DC), Consuelo Veloso (FA), Daniela Serrano (PC), Gael Yeomans (FA), Lorena Fries (FA), Juan Santana (PS), Lorena Pizarro (PC), Gonzalo Winter (FA), Boris Barrera (PC), Ana María Gazmuri (AH), and Emilia Nuyado (PS). Opposition deputies demand declaring the U.S. ambassador persona non grata and question the minister's tone. Dedvi Missene