SÃO PAULO — When President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva welcomes South American heads of state for a “retreat” in Brasília on May 30, his first challenge will be to cheer up the participants: Virtually all the presidents face enormous domestic problems and several are fighting for their political survival. The host himself is facing fierce opposition that complicates his life in Congress as well as Western backlash over his controversial stance on the war in Ukraine.
Here is where the invitees are at: In Ecuador, embattled President Guillermo Lasso won’t even stand for reelection in three months. Paraguay’s outgoing leader Mario Abdo is deeply unpopular. Bolivia’s Luis Arce and Argentina’s outgoing Alberto Fernández seem powerless to revert the meltdown of their respective economies.
Even one-time regional darlings are in tough positions. Uruguay’s President Luis Lacalle Pou is battling rising crime and corruption scandals, Chile’s Gabriel Boric and Colombia’s Gustavo Petro are severely weakened, and Peru’s….
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