In recent days, Chile and Mexico became the latest Latin American countries to reestablish formal diplomatic relations with Honduras, which (unfairly) became a pariah after the ouster of President Manuel Zelaya last summer. The holdouts, not surprisingly, include Venezuela, Bolivia, Ecuador, and Nicaragua – four countries governed by radical, anti-U.S. populists. Another holdout is Brazil, whose outgoing president, center-left democrat Lula da Silva, has embraced a series of foreign-policy positions that are at odds with Washington.

Both Chile and Mexico decided to recognize the new Honduran government after the release of an Organization of American States (OAS) report on July 29. The OAS noted that the administration of President Porfirio Lobo (who was elected in November and took office in January) has been cooperating with the post-Zelaya reconciliation process. Indeed, Lobo has shown a “favorable disposition . . . to convene a national dialogue among all the political sectors, to discuss issues of interest to all parties.”