During Rabasa's time at the foreign ministry, Mexico refused to impose OAS-led sanctions on Castro's Cuba and admitted a flood of political refugees from Pinochet's Chile.
Rabasa was also instrumental in the country's adoption of a 200-nautical-mile (370 km) Economic Exclusion Zone and the creation of the Matías Romero Diplomatic Studies Institute.
This resulted in a touristic boycott of the American Jewish community against Mexico,[3] which made visible internal and external conflicts of Echeverría's politics, for example with Rabasa.
Rabasa resigned from the cabinet on 28 December 1975, due to differences of opinion with President Echeverría arising from heightened international tensions following Mexico's vote in favour of United Nations General Assembly Resolution 3379, equating Zionism with racism.
After he stepped down he wrote several books including History of the Mexican Constitution, The Political Thought of the Constituent and Environmental Law.