US sanctions Guatemala officials ahead of Harris meeting

The US sanctions target a member of Guatemala’s Congress and a former presidential chief of staff over alleged corruption.

The United States on Monday imposed sanctions on a member of Guatemala’s Congress and a former presidential chief of staff in the country over alleged corruption, as Washington presses a number of Central American governments to crack down on graft. The move was announced hours before US Vice President Kamala Harris was due to meet with Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei to discuss an increase in Central American migration that has led to a crisis at the US-Mexico border. In a statement, the US Department of the Treasury said it had blacklisted Felipe Alejos Lorenzana, an elected delegate in Guatemala’s Congress, and Gustavo Adolfo Alejos Cambara, who was chief of staff under former President Alvaro Colom.