Luis Abinader will not go to COP26 due to insecurity in Haiti

This is how gangs in Haiti control gasoline 0:48

(CNN) -

Dominican Republic President Luis Abinader canceled his trip to the COP26 summit in Glasgow citing insecurity in Haiti, according to a statement from the Presidency on Thursday.

"The marked deterioration of governance in Haiti requires continuous monitoring of the political, social and economic situation to guarantee a rapid response by the Dominican authorities to any unforeseen event that puts national security at risk," the statement read.

• Haiti seeks extradition of Colombian arrested suspected of assassination of President Moïse

Kidnappings in Haiti are big business for gangs 2:46

The Presidency added that Abinader, as head of the country's foreign policy and "supreme authority" of the Army, needs to remain in the country to "take the measures that circumstances demand."

Haiti and the Dominican Republic are neighboring countries that share a border on Hispaniola.

Haiti has seen an increase in kidnappings in gang violence and kidnappings, including the kidnapping of 16 American missionaries and one Canadian earlier this month.

At least 782 people were abducted in Haiti between the beginning of the year and Oct. 16, including more than 50 foreign nationals, according to the latest estimates from the Center for Analysis and Research for Human Rights, a Port-au-Prince-based organization.

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The national fuel shortage has hit the country hard, including hampering the work of hospitals, sparking general strikes and protests and, in July, the country's president, Jovenel Moise, was assassinated, stunned the country. .

COP26 Haiti