Mexico won’t be taking part in the international pile-on to sanction Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, as President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has said, he seeks to keep his country on peaceful terms with all nations, RT reported.

“We are not going to take any sort of economic retaliation because we want to maintain good relations with all the governments of the world,” Lopez Obrador told reporters. He added that remaining neutral will put Mexico in a position to “talk with the parties in the conflict”.

The Mexican leader’s position on the Ukraine crisis marks a novel diplomatic strategy as other nations around the world — including former Warsaw Pact nations such as Bulgaria and Romania — join the US in trying to punish Russia.

Russian investment in Mexico is estimated at some $132 million and the bilateral trade at more than $2.4 billion.

López Obrador also sounded off on the censoring of some Russian media outlets and called on Twitter to answer accusations that it is removing messages favorable to Russia. “We can’t be speaking of freedom and at the same time limiting freedom of expression,” he said. Mexico’s position on sanctions is in stark contrast to the United States, which has joined Europe in applying sanctions to Russia.