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### Viewing cable 09SANJOSE297, VICE PRESIDENT BIDEN'S MARCH 30 MULTILATERAL

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Reference ID | Created | Released | Classification | Origin
--- | --- | --- | --- | ---
09SANJOSE297 | 2009-04-08 21:09 | 2011-03-14 18:06 | CONFIDENTIAL | Embassy San Jose

Appears in these articles:
http://www.nacion.com/2011-03-12/Investigacion/NotasDestacadas/Investigacion2711772.aspx
http://www.nacion.com/2011-03-10/Investigacion/NotasDestacadas/Investigacion2707705.aspx
http://www.nacion.com/2011-03-10/Investigacion/NotasSecundarias/Investigacion2707712.aspx
http://www.nacion.com/2011-03-10/Investigacion/NotasSecundarias/Investigacion2707716.aspx

`

    INFO  LOG-00   EEB-00   AID-00   AMAD-00  AEX-00   A-00     COME-00
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          OBO-00   H-00     TEDE-00  INR-00   ITC-01   LAB-01   L-00
          MOFM-00  MOF-00   VCIE-00  DCP-00   NSAE-00  ISN-00   OMB-00
          NIMA-00  MCC-00   GIWI-00  ISNE-00  DOHS-00  FMPC-00  SP-00
          SSO-00   SS-00    STR-00   USSS-00  NCTC-00  CBP-00   BBG-00
          IIP-00   DSCC-00  PRM-00   DRL-00   G-00     NFAT-00  SAS-00
          FA-00    SWCI-00    /003W
                      ------------------502102  082158Z /38

    O 082146Z APR 09
    FM AMEMBASSY SAN JOSE
    TO SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 0742
    WHITE HOUSE WASHDC IMMEDIATE
    INFO WESTERN HEMISPHERIC AFFAIRS DIPL POSTS IMMEDIATE
    CIA WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
    NSC WASHDC IMMEDIATE

` `

    C O N F I D E N T I A L SAN JOSE 000297

    E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/03/2019
    TAGS: ECON PINR PREL XK OVIP BIDEN JOSEPH PGOV
    SUBJECT: VICE PRESIDENT BIDEN'S MARCH 30 MULTILATERAL
    MEETING WITH CENTRAL AMERICAN LEADERS

    Classified By: DCM Peter M. Brennan for reason 1.4 (d)

    ¶1. (U) March 30, 2009; 1045 am; San Jose, Costa Rica.

    ¶2. (U) Participants:
    USG:
    The Vice President
    Ambassador Peter Cianchette
    Anthony Blinken, NSA to the Vice President
    Brian McKeon, Deputy NSA to the Vice President
    Dan Restrepo, Senior Director, Western Hemisphere Affairs, NSC
    Craig Kelly, PDAS WHA
    Tim Lattimer (notetaker), Regional Environmental Officer,
    Embassy San Jose

    OTHER GOVERNMENTS:
    Prime Minister Dean Barrow, Belize
    President Oscar Arias, Costa Rica
    President Antony Saca, El Salvador
    President-elect Mauricio Funes, El Salvador
    President Alvaro Colom, Guatemala
    Vice President Aristides Mejia, Honduras
    Vice ForMin Manuel Coronel, Nicaragua
    President Martin Torrijos, Panama

    ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: Vice President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. met March
    30 with Central American leaders at a pre-Summit of the
    Americas gathering hosted by Costa Rican President Oscar
    Arias.  The Vice President stressed the Obama
    Administration's commitment to building a &new U.S.
    relationship8 with Latin America based on a renewed
    partnership to meet common challenges, mutual respect, and
    genuine consultation.  He emphasized the USG's desire to
    seize the opportunities presented by the international
    economic crisis and to lay the foundations for short-term
    recovery and long-term sustained economic growth.  Central
    American leaders welcomed the Obama Administration's show of
    positive interest in the region and embraced Vice President
    Biden's call for partnership and close coordination in
    meeting the full scope of challenges, ranging from the
    economic crisis to poverty reduction, law
    enforcement/security, immigration, international financial
    institutions, and energy and climate change.  END SUMMARY.

    ---------------------------------------------
    BIDEN: "NEW U.S.-LATIN AMERICAN RELATIONSHIP"
    ---------------------------------------------

    ¶2. (C) Following a brief introduction by President Arias,
    Vice President Biden echoed Arias, suggestion that the
    gathered leaders "look ahead" rather than behind in
    considering how best to work together in addressing the host
    of challenges the U.S. and the region face.  He noted that
    President Obama asked him to visit with leaders in the region
    to listen to their concerns and to begin to develop a
    coordinated approach.  The Vice President stressed that he
    did not come "with a plan for the hemisphere," but instead
    came to begin working toward "a plan with the hemisphere."
    Noting the "checkered U.S. history" in the region, he urged
    Central American leaders to put aside their skepticism of
    U.S. intentions and to engage in an honest dialogue about how
    best to renew the U.S. partnership with the region.

    ¶3. (C) The Vice President recapped the Obama Administration's
    "bold action" during its first 65 days to revive the U.S.
    economy, including a USD 787 billion economic stimulus
    package, USD 1 trillion for the troubled U.S. financial
    sector, and a USD 3.8 trillion dollar budget proposal aimed
    at re-setting the conditions for long-term growth,
    particularly through investments in education, energy, and
    health care.  He also said the USG hopes to use a series of
    upcoming international meetings (e.g., G20, Summit of the
    Americas, and the G8) to secure coordinated approaches
    internationally to key challenges, particularly in
    kick-starting the flow of credit again in the financial
    markets.  The Vice President added that the U.S. will "lead
    by the power of its example rather than the example of its
    power" in addressing other issues, such as climate change,
    food security, education, and immigration.

    ---------------------------------------------
    EL SALVADOR (SACA): A "VERY DIFFERENT" CENTRAL AMERICA
    ---------------------------------------------

    ¶4. (C) Noting that the Vice President is visiting a "very
    different Central America," outgoing El Salvadoran President
    Antonio Saca touted his country's "free and transparent"
    elections in March.  He pointed to his administration's
    efforts to ensure a smooth transition to the opposition
    FMLN's winning candidate, President-elect Mauricio Funes, as
    an example of El Salvador's maturing democracy.  Saca said
    that the presence of Central American leaders at this meeting
    with Vice President Biden reflects their good will to work
    with the Obama Administration toward a more hopeful future.

    ¶5. (C) Saca noted that, as Central America's principal trade
    partner, the U.S. slowdown has already hit the region hard.
    El Salvador saw remittances from the U.S. drop by 8-10
    percent during the first two months of the year, along with
    declines in key sectors such as tourism and construction.
    Saca urged the U.S. to see the region's strategic importance
    and to work toward legalizing the status of El Salvador's
    more than 500,000 illegal residents in the U.S.

    ¶6. (C) He also urged U.S. support for boosting the resources
    of international financial institutions (IFIs) such as the
    World Bank and Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) to help
    the region better cope with the "perfect storm" brought about
    by the global financial crisis, energy challenges, and food
    security.  Noting the growing importance of free trade for
    creating jobs and alleviating poverty in the region, Saca
    encouraged U.S. ratification of the pending Colombian and
    Panamanian trade deals.

    ---------------------------------------------
    PANAMA: "NEW ERA" IN REGIONAL RELATIONS WITH THE US
    ---------------------------------------------

    ¶7. (C) President Martin Torrijos hailed a "new era in Central
    American relations with the U.S." and suggested that the
    current financial crisis offered an opportunity for stimulus
    packages that could better enable the region to deal with
    unemployment, poverty, food security, and energy problems.
    He urged the U.S. to support re-capitalization of the Central
    American Development Bank and the Central American Bank for
    Economic Integration (BCIE) and to support greater
    "flexibility" in the rules for IFIs so that they might help
    the region better manage its various challenges (e.g., by
    allowing more resources for government budget support).

    ¶8. (C) Citing progress in Panama, Colombia, and elsewhere in
    the region on public security and narco-trafficking, Torrijos
    stressed the importance of U.S. cooperation with the region
    to find shared solutions.  He expressed Panama's concern
    about the global climate change issue and praised President
    Obama,s decision to convene an April meeting of "major
    economies" in Washington to address climate change.

    ---------------------------------------
    GUATEMALA: LET'S AVOID A BROADER CRISIS
    ---------------------------------------

    ¶9. (C) President Alvaro Colom warned against allowing the
    economic/energy/climate crisis to roll together into a
    broader socio-political crisis.  He said that Guatemala had
    great hopes for the Obama Administration, particularly on
    immigration issues and on law enforcement/security
    cooperation.  Colom stressed that USG support has been vital
    to the GOG's recent successes in combating narco-traffickers
    (e.g., last year's seizure of three times more illegal drugs
    than the previous year) and in strengthening the judicial
    sector (e.g., the recent arrest of four generals accused of
    corruption).  He highlighted the growing importance of free
    trade to the region and called for U.S. ratification of the
    pending Colombia and Panama trade pacts.

    ---------------------------------------------
    BELIZE: A NEW U.S. "SINCERITY" TOWARD THE REGION
    ---------------------------------------------

    ¶10. (C) Prime Minister Dean Barrow said that VP Biden's
    message offered "welcome reassurance" to the region and that
    his "deft touch" reflected a "new U.S. sincerity" toward the
    region.  He urged U.S. support for recapitalizing the IDB so
    that the region could better "help ourselves deal with this
    crisis."  Barrow said that Belize was particularly concerned
    that the proposed "Levin Bill" would target Belize as a "tax
    haven" despite the country's lack of bank secrecy laws and
    its classification by the OECD as a "cooperating country."
    He worried about Treasury Secretary Geithner's signals of
    Administration support for the Levin Bill and the potential
    for such legislation to "wreak havoc" on small economies,
    such as Belize, that have developed their financial services
    sectors to reduce their dependence on commodity exports.

    --------------------------------------------- -
    EL SALVADOR (FUNES): FINANCIAL CRISIS IS MOST URGENT
    --------------------------------------------- -

    ¶11. (C) President-elect Mauricio Funes said that the
    international financial crisis was the most urgent matter
    affecting the region.  He said that it could cascade into
    declines in exports, remittances, tourism, and foreign direct
    investment, thereby driving down individual incomes and
    potentially reversing the region's hard-won gains in reducing
    poverty.  Funes called for regional cooperation and
    "international solidarity," especially from the U.S., to
    support the efforts of individual countries to cope with
    these challenges.  He said that the crisis offers a "unique
    opportunity" for the U.S. and Central America to redefine
    their relationship.

    ¶12. (C) Funes suggested that a new strategic agenda between
    the U.S. and the region should include the following:
    -- Regional security ("we will maintain continuity with the
    region and the U.S.");
    -- immigration (an "integral solution" is needed);
    -- bilateral cooperation to deal with the financial crisis,
    not just multilateral cooperation; and,
    -- social cohesion (e.g., more USG support for strengthening
    institutions and financial sector oversight).

    --------------------------------------------- -
    HONDURAS: RAISED HOPES, BUT RESTRAINED RHETORIC
    --------------------------------------------- -

    ¶13. (C) Vice President Aristides Mejia said that President
    Obama,s election raised the hopes and expectations of the
    region, not just in the U.S.  He hoped for Obama,s success
    with his domestic agenda and in his engagement with the G20
    and others to address the global financial crisis.  Mejia
    recalled that President Zelaya's December 2008 letter to then
    President-elect Obama emphasized the importance of
    "strengthening our diplomatic channels," mutual respect, and
    "non-interference" in internal matters.

    ¶14. (C) Mejia ticked off the GOH's key concerns, as follows:
    -- integral U.S. immigration reform;
    -- free trade (it has helped create jobs and spur economic
    activity);
    -- Millennium Challenge Account (has greatly benefited
    Honduras);
    -- stronger regional integration;
    -- cooperation on regional development banks (more money and
    more favorable lending terms);
    -- regional security (modify the Merida Initiative to fit the
    needs of each country); and,
    -- other issues such as UN reform, dialog with Venezuela and
    Bolivia, and ending the U.S. embargo on trade with Cuba.

    --------------------------------------------- -
    NICARAGUA: "NEW DAY" (BUT OLD WORDS) FOR THE AMERICAS
    --------------------------------------------- -

    ¶15. (C) Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Manuel Coronel, who
    spoke last as the lowest-ranking visitor in protocol order,
    commended VP Biden's intent to "listen" and said that this
    meeting signaled a "new day for the Americas."  However,
    Coronel said that Nicaragua wanted to convey the following
    "common Central American points" as President Pro Tempore of
    the Central American Integration System (SICA, in Spanish):

    -- end interventionist tactics;
    -- give more priority to spending on social needs, not just
    commercial and mercantilist interests;
    -- reform U.S. immigration;
    -- meet the "Millennium Development Goal" of channeling 0.7
    percent of GDP into official development assistance; and,
    -- support recapitalization of the BCIE and the Central
    American Development Bank.

    ¶16. (C) Coronel said that the region enjoyed good USG
    cooperation on law enforcement issues.  He urged U.S. support
    for a three-year law enforcement and security plan put forth
    by the Central American Commission on Security.  Coronel also
    suggested that firms exporting to the U.S. under CAFTA-DR are
    among the "first and hardest hit" by the U.S. economic
    slowdown.  He hoped that the U.S. might support the creation
    of mechanisms to help such firms better cope with the crisis.
    -------------------------------------------
    BIDEN RESPONDS: WE HEAR YOU, BUT BE PATIENT
    -------------------------------------------

    ¶17. (C) VP Biden responded by commending the absence of
    recriminations and acrimony in the statements offered by
    Central American leaders.  While sympathizing with the
    genuine concerns offered by the Central Americans, he urged
    them to be patient with the U.S., which, he said, faces
    significant domestic challenges that limit the USG's ability
    to respond.  For example, he noted how politically difficult
    it would be for the Obama Administration to put an end to
    deportations or press for legalizing the status of illegal
    immigrants at a time when Americans face rising unemployment,
    falling incomes, and the loss of their homes.

    ¶18. (C) VP Biden said that the Treasury Department is looking
    closely at calls to recapitalize the IDB and other IFIs.  He
    noted the IDB should use existing resources to lend to
    countries hardest hit by the crisis.  He noted that the IFIs
    are high on the G20 agenda and reiterated the challenges
    posed by a "very hostile domestic environment."  The Vice
    President added that the USG must also take a hard look at
    how well IFIs have previously managed their funds.

    ¶19. (C) VP Biden offered to help Belize make its case to the
    Treasury Department as to why it should not be rolled up into
    U.S. or international efforts aimed at tax havens.  Turning
    to Panama, the Vice President offered encouragement that "we
    can finish" the TPA, but urged the Panamanians to remain
    patient as the Administration deals with the issue in the
    U.S. Congress.

    ¶20. (C) On the Cuba issue, Vice President Biden said that
    President Obama had offered a campaign promise of some
    changes in U.S. policy toward Cuba, short of lifting the
    embargo.  Noting that democracy is our overall goal, he urged
    the region to work with the U.S. to ensure that the Cuban
    people can decide their own future when Cuba enters into its
    "inevitable transition."

    ¶21. (C) Calling himself a "hard-eyed realist" who is
    "genuinely optimistic" about the future, the Vice President
    stressed the importance of the leaders being &honest with
    each other8 about priorities.  He noted that there were no
    significant conflicts around the table; there were, of
    course, disagreements, but they were not significant and
    should be put in perspective.  He cautioned against making
    every issue (e.g., Cuba) a priority and stressed that
    although the Obama Administration may not have "all the
    answers," it has an "open mind" and a readiness to work with
    the region on "our most urgent challenges."  Vice President
    Biden suggested that the measure of success in the region
    will be not so much whether GDP growth increases, but whether
    living standards rise for those in the middle and lower
    economic classes.

    -------------------------------
    COSTA RICA: AID IS STILL NEEDED
    -------------------------------

    ¶22. (C) In closing the meeting, President Arias urged the
    U.S. to recalibrate its "trade, not aid" posture to one that
    sees foreign aid as something that advances U.S. interests in
    the region.  He suggested that the upcoming meeting of G20
    leaders should focus not only on multilateral assistance
    through the IFIs, but also give greater attention to
    bilateral assistance.  Reprising one of his themes from the
    bilateral meeting with the Vice President, Arias maintained
    that a world that spends 13 times more per year on military
    budgets than it does on official development assistance is
    unable to adequately address poverty, disease, education,
    environment (especially climate change), and the threats of
    terrorism.

    ¶23. (U) The Office of the Vice President cleared this message.

    WILSON

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