QUITO, April 8 (Xinhua) -- Ecuador has sent a diplomatic note of protest to Colombia over recent remarks by Colombian President Gustavo Petro regarding a former Ecuadorian vice president, local media reported Wednesday.

The note, sent Tuesday and made public Wednesday, expressed Ecuador's "strongest protest" over Petro's statements describing former Ecuadorian Vice President Jorge Glas as a "political prisoner."

The Ecuadorian Foreign Ministry said Glas is "not a politically persecuted individual, but a person sentenced by Ecuadorian justice following legitimate proceedings," adding that the rulings were issued in accordance with the country's constitution, the rule of law and due process guarantees.

It stressed that Ecuador has an independent judicial system and warned that attempts to delegitimize its rulings from abroad constitute a violation of the principle of non-intervention under international law.

Petro said Tuesday on X that Glas is a "political prisoner," while Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa rejected the claim, saying Glas must face justice. ■