Martin Vizcarra, who had been Peru’s vice president, abruptly became president last week after Pedro Pablo Kuczynski resigned amid growing graft allegations.
A former Wall Street banker who once held U.S. citizenship, Kuczynski had been one of Maduro’s most outspoken critics, barring him from the Summit of the Americas that Peru will host on April 13-14.
Maduro vowed to attend the summit anyway, and his loyalists celebrated Kuczynski’s downfall with a fireworks display last week.
But Vizcarra declined to weigh in on the dispute as he focuses on building support across Peru by promising to refocus the government’s attention on domestic problems that had been neglected while Kuczynski struggled to remain in power.
Attending a news conference , Vizcarra was asked if he supported banning Nicolas Maduro from the Summit of the Americas.
He replied: “Our foreign policy is so delicate we must leave it in the hands of specialists. The foreign affairs ministry is taking the corresponding decisions that we’ll support".
President Vizcarra promised a “completely new” Cabinet upon taking office on Friday, but has yet to name his foreign minister or other ministers. He said he would unveil his Cabinet next Monday.
