The U.S. State Department called Nicaragua’s formal withdrawal from the Organization of American States on Sunday “another step away from democracy.”

The OAS has long criticized rights violations under Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega, who has rejected those criticisms. In November 2021, Ortega, who governs alongside his wife, Vice President Rosario Murillo, initiated the two-year process for Nicaragua to leave the OAS.

“The Ortega/Murillo regime’s withdrawal from the OAS is another step away from democracy and further isolates Nicaragua from the international community,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller wrote on X, formerly known Twitter.