Peru’s fourth foreign minister resigns in 14 months

Peru’s Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Rodriguez resigned on Friday, becoming the fourth diplomatic chief to step down under President Pedro Castillo whose government has been wracked by political instability.

Castillo, who has survived two impeachment attempts since taking over in July 2021 and is facing six criminal investigations into alleged corruption, has seen a wave of key appointments step down this year.

LIMA,PERU – SEPTEMBER 05: Security forces take measures as the president of Peru, Pedro Castillo arrives to appear at the nation’s prosecutor’s office in Lima, Peru on September 5, 2022. President Pedro Castillo attended to testify before the public ministry for the preliminary investigations that were initiated in the cases of PetroPeru and the departure of Mariano Gonzales from the Ministry of the Interior. Supporters of the president of Peru hold signs and people against the president protest during the assistance to the National Prosecutor’s Office. Klebher Vasquez / Anadolu Agency (Photo by Klebher Vasquez / ANADOLU AGENCY / Anadolu Agency via AFP)

Rodriguez announced his “irrevocable resignation from the post” in a letter shared on the foreign ministry’s Twitter account.

Local media recently reported disagreements between Rodriguez and Castillo, including over several high-profile environmental issues.

Castillo’s first foreign minister was former guerrilla fighter Héctor Béjar, who lasted just 19 days in the post.

The leftist president, who has been under nonstop fire from his right-wing rivals, appeared before prosecutors on Monday to respond to accusations that he ran a graft network from his office, dismissing the claims as a political ploy to unseat him.

He is serving a five-year term that ends in 2026 and cannot be tried while in office.

Peru is no stranger to instability: it had three different presidents in five days in 2020, and five presidents and three legislatures since 2016.