A New Jersey mayor said he will not allow Ecuador President Rafael Correa to attend a high school event in his city in the face of an uproar from Cuban exiles who regard the leftist leader as an "enemy of the United States."

Fox News Latino reported that Union City Mayor Brian Stack released a statement Wednesday saying, "It is evident that President Correa has associated with Fidel and Raul Castro of Cuba and Hugo Chavez of Venezuela. Even associating with such regimes sends a terrible message to the world and condones the many evils that have been imposed on the residents of those nations. For these reasons, I refuse to welcome President Correa to Union City."

Stack issued the visit ban on Correa upon learning from Cuban exiles in the city that he was invited to attend an Ecuadorean event at Union City High School on Friday. The exiles, who are angry at Correa's oppressive rule in his country and for his open support to their tormentor, Fidel Castro of Cuba, immediately demanded that he be dis-invited to the occasion.
Cuban exile leader Sergio Gatria said the mayor met them and agreed to cancel the event.

"Correa supports dictators, is an oppressive leader and hobnobs with [Iranian President] Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. This man is a sworn enemy of the United States. It is an affront to this community to roll out the red carpet for someone like that," Fox News Latino quoted Gatria as saying.

Stack had already informed the Ecuadorean consulate that Correa's visit to the school event would be cancelled. Consulate officials warned that Ecuadoreans will protest any cancellation in front of Union City hall, but the mayor dared them to do so.
"If the consulate organizes a demonstration, we'll be there to counter-protest," Gatria said, according to Fox News Latino.

Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa.
Union City Mayor Brian P. Stack