State's Negroponte Outlines Goals for Latin American Development
Washington th The United States is pursuing a positive agenda with nations in the Western Hemisphere on trade, democracy and efforts to combat transnational threats, according to Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte, speaking midway through his trip to Latin America. No nation, by itself, can deal with threats such as terrorism and narco-trafficking, he said May 9 during a meeting with local media in Quito, Ecuador.
(Media-Newswire.com) - Washington – The United States is pursuing a positive agenda with nations in the Western Hemisphere on trade, democracy and efforts to combat transnational threats, according to Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte, speaking midway through his trip to Latin America.
No nation, by itself, can deal with threats such as terrorism and narco-trafficking, he said May 9 during a meeting with local media in Quito, Ecuador.
Negroponte said his visit -- to Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Panama –- is a signal of the importance that the United States attaches to Western Hemispheric relations. All the countries on his itinerary are democratic nations with which the United States has friendly relations.
During his May 7-12 trip, Negroponte has focused on regional cooperation; the free-trade agreements with Colombia, Panama and Peru pending before the U.S. Congress; energy issues; good governance; government accountability; education; health care; counterdrug efforts; and small business promotion. ( See related article. )
Negroponte was in Ecuador’s capital on May 9 for the signing of a U.S. Agency for International Development agreement with local banks that will provide $13 million in credit guarantees to support small business enterprises.
Negroponte is meeting with the media, housing officials and human rights groups in addition to business executives and government leaders. He is accompanied by Assistant Secretary of State Thomas Shannon who is responsible for Western Hemisphere affairs.
In Bogotá, Negroponte said he anticipates vigorous debate in the U.S. Congress on a trade pact with Colombia, but also expressed his strong hope that it will be passed. The president is committed to securing legislative approval for the agreement, he said, adding, “We would like to see that approved as soon as possible.” ( See related article. )
If free-trade agreements are approved as envisioned with Colombia, Panama and Peru, he said there will be pacts between the United States and Canada, Mexico, and Central America, followed by Panama, Colombia, Peru and Chile. This arc in the Pacific “will form the nucleus of a group of countries committed to democracy, free markets, and a free trade existence” which, he said, is very important. The United States “favors a democratic and free market approach to political development,” he added.
OFFERING ALTERNATIVE MEANS OF EMPLOYMENT
In Bogotá, Negroponte said much has been accomplished in restoring security, enforcing law and order and disarming paramilitaries throughout Colombia.
The government of President Alvaro Uribe has made more progress on paramilitaries than any previous government, he said, with almost 30,000 fighters demobilized and 60 key paramilitary leaders awaiting trial. The deputy secretary also cited the dramatic increase in extraditions of drug traffickers since Uribe came into office.
Negroponte said he had an opportunity in Colombia to visit several projects that seek to teach former paramilitary personnel and others how to pursue “alternative sources of employment.” One project, Compartir, trains individuals “to do something else besides cultivating drugs,” he said.
THE FUTURE OF MANTA AIR BASE
While Negroponte was in Quito he was asked what will happen if the government of President Rafael Correa continues to hold firm in its announced decision not to extend U.S. access to Ecuador’s Manta airfield when a bilateral agreement expires in 2009. The decision to grant access resides with Ecuador, Negroponte said, but he urged officials to analyze the costs and benefits of their decision.
The United States believes that ready access to the airfield is useful to both countries because it has been so helpful in intercepting drugs destined for the international market, he said. Additionally, intercepting drug shipments also helps protect Ecuador’s sovereignty which, Negroponte said, “is violated by these drug traffickers.”
Transcripts of Negroponte’s remarks during his Latin American trip are available on the State Department Web site.
For more information on U.S. policies in the region, see The Americas.
( USINFO is produced by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov ) By Jacquelyn S. Porth USINFO Staff Writer
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