Obama interview
The Spanish paper El País interviewed Barack Obama, and there was a Latin America question that he proceeded to dodge, though the interviewer blew it by asking two questions at once. Obama apparently didn't want to talk about Cuba.
P. Desde su perspectiva, ¿qué papel le ve a España en el futuro de Cuba y, en general, en las relaciones de Estados Unidos con América Latina?
R. Dados los profundos lazos históricos, culturales, económicos y familiares que tanto Estados Unidos como España tienen con los países de América, existe una amplia gama de oportunidades de que nuestros dos países trabajen juntos en objetivos compartidos. España es un aliado valioso en asuntos fundamentales de América Latina, como la defensa los valores democráticos, el diseño de un futuro de energías limpias o la seguridad de los ciudadanos en su día a día. Hemos trabajado con el presidente Zapatero en estos asuntos y esperamos seguir haciéndolo.
And how is Spain involved in the "day to day security" of Latin Americans? If anything, it shows he is barely thinking about the region.
4 comments:
In fairness to Obama, he seems to be saying Spain is important for numerous reasons.
President Obama is an extremely intelligent politician, lawyer, professor. Mr Obama is an intellectual, no doubt of that.
The worst problems of the USA are in Asia and in the Economy : Domestic and International.
Even if Congress and Obama do not do anything in "Immigration", then problems will find their own solution.
As a young person I was very impressed by Taoism, Lao Tse, Chuang Tse, Lin Yutang, etc ...
Heaven has "automatic" solutions for problems, that is what those very ancient Chinese taught to the rest of mankind.
There will be very grave international problems in the next decades.
My guess is that the United States and Latin America will be forced to be closer by the next horrible events.
People are very aware of the Geographic Proximity of Canada, USA and Latin America plus the Caribbean Region.
But they don't realize other proximities : Cultural, Historic, Linguistic, Religious, Trade Numbers, Exports, Imports.
Who knows that the Exports of the USA to Latin America plus Caribbean are greater than those to the European Union ??
Events will compel the USA and Latin America to act together in an unpredictable Future.
Vicente Duque
These remarks from Asst. Sec. Valenzuela are the most recent detailed comments from the Adminstration on Cuba. Bland and meaningless as can be. Obama's blowing of this moment in US-Cuba relations should be a foreign policy scandal.
Obama asked for freedom for politial prisoners and economic liberalizations - and GOT both - yet completely ignored it all). You would think if Obama achieved his top stated demand from Iran or North Korea, they might trumpet it - and the bi-partisan relationship might logically move forward.
Funny that he mentions democratic values, precisely when talking about a region that inherited vertical power from the colonial period and, more recently, who has had several followers of Franco in office.
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