Former Paraguay president Horacio Cartes (File image)
Photo : AP
Cartes and his three adult children were declared ineligible to travel to the United States. As per the US State Department, Cartes “obstructed a major international investigation into the transnational crime. Notably, Brazil has sought the extradition of the former president in a money laundering scandal.
“These actions undermined the stability of Paraguay’s democratic institutions by contributing to public perception of corruption and impunity within the office of the Paraguayan president,” said Secretary of State Antony Blinken as quoted by AFP.
The group has allegedly profited from the smuggling of counterfeit cigarettes through Paraguay and its porous three-way frontier with Argentina and Brazil. Last month, Argentina grounded an airplane with Venezuelan and Iranian crew after Paraguayan intelligence accused a passenger of having links with Iran’s elite Quds Force, which backs Hezbollah. However, Argentine President Alberto Fernandez later called it a false allegation.
In a statement, Cartes said that he was ready to prove his innocence. The businessman-turned-politician led the South American nation from 2013 to 2018. He runs a business that included tobacco and soccer teams.
