| Followers | 24 |
| Posts | 2163 |
| Boards Moderated | 1 |
| Alias Born | 10/29/2006 |
Tuesday, January 09, 2007 9:54:27 PM
Panamanian Justice Minister Hector Aleman - Oct 12, 2005 Reuters
US, Central America Discuss Security Cooperation
KEY BISCAYNE, Florida - U.S. and Central American security leaders Wednesday discussed closer ties in battling drug trafficking, terrorism and other crime, including the touchy issue of whether and how the military might assume police duties.
"The military is not the answer" alone to regional stability and prosperity, U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld cautioned defense and security ministers from seven Central American countries on the first day of a two-day security conference.
But Rumsfeld and other ministers, who pressed for closer cooperation in law enforcement, intelligence, border protection and responding to natural disasters, announced no decision on whether militaries in the region -- some with dismal human rights records -- should take up the baton against criminals.
The meeting came as Central American states, especially hard-hit Guatemala, counted more than 1,000 deaths from Hurricane Stan, which slashed through the region with heavy rains and catastrophic mudslides this month.
Belize Home Affairs Minister Ralph Fonseca warned that crime could become a threat to tourism in his small country of pristine beaches and crystal waters, but cautioned that if troops in Central America were used to battle crime it must be with "stringent rules of engagement..."
Guatemalan Defense Minister Maj. Gen. Carlos Villanueva said his country planned to form a joint military peacekeeping battalion with El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua, but made no mention of any potential use beyond regional and international peacekeeping.
"We are going to try to have a (joint) unit at a battalion level," he said, adding that shared costs was a key issue. "We need political support for this."
Brutal Dictatorships Over – Rumsfeld
Some Latin American experts say the United States is trying to encourage more military involvement in fighting criminals from drug runners to street gangs -- a touchy issue in a region that suffered brutal dictatorships in the 1970s and 1980s.
But Rumsfeld told the meeting that was a bygone era and would not return.
"Today, the dictatorships of previous decades have given way to democracies, and rivalries that once threatened stability are now past," he said, adding that democratic leaders in the region realized that cooperation was the key to security and economic progress.
"Drug traffickers, smugglers, hostage-takers, terrorists, violent gangs - these are threats that are serious. But our countries are combating them and, together, I believe we can defeat them over time," Rumsfeld said.
"However, it is clear that they can be effectively fought only if countries work together even more closely than we are today."
Over the last year, security concerns have included U.S. worries that anti-aircraft missiles in Nicaragua could fall into "terrorists"' hands and a dispute over navigation rights in a river separating Nicaragua and Costa Rica.
Costa Rica and Panama have no militaries, but want to cooperate loosely with neighbors on common security issues.
Costa Rican Police and Public Security Minister Rogelio Ramos also said his and other mountainous countries in Central America were very vulnerable to natural disasters ranging from hurricanes to earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.
And Panamanian Justice Minister Hector Aleman pressed for closer cooperation in battling arms and other illicit trafficking through the Panama Canal and on the high seas.
Intelligence sharing was essential, Aleman said, noting that thousands of ships that pass through the canal visit ports all over the world "and we have a huge responsibility on our shoulders."
http://en.epochtimes.com/news/5-10-12/33246.html
US, Central America Discuss Security Cooperation
KEY BISCAYNE, Florida - U.S. and Central American security leaders Wednesday discussed closer ties in battling drug trafficking, terrorism and other crime, including the touchy issue of whether and how the military might assume police duties.
"The military is not the answer" alone to regional stability and prosperity, U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld cautioned defense and security ministers from seven Central American countries on the first day of a two-day security conference.
But Rumsfeld and other ministers, who pressed for closer cooperation in law enforcement, intelligence, border protection and responding to natural disasters, announced no decision on whether militaries in the region -- some with dismal human rights records -- should take up the baton against criminals.
The meeting came as Central American states, especially hard-hit Guatemala, counted more than 1,000 deaths from Hurricane Stan, which slashed through the region with heavy rains and catastrophic mudslides this month.
Belize Home Affairs Minister Ralph Fonseca warned that crime could become a threat to tourism in his small country of pristine beaches and crystal waters, but cautioned that if troops in Central America were used to battle crime it must be with "stringent rules of engagement..."
Guatemalan Defense Minister Maj. Gen. Carlos Villanueva said his country planned to form a joint military peacekeeping battalion with El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua, but made no mention of any potential use beyond regional and international peacekeeping.
"We are going to try to have a (joint) unit at a battalion level," he said, adding that shared costs was a key issue. "We need political support for this."
Brutal Dictatorships Over – Rumsfeld
Some Latin American experts say the United States is trying to encourage more military involvement in fighting criminals from drug runners to street gangs -- a touchy issue in a region that suffered brutal dictatorships in the 1970s and 1980s.
But Rumsfeld told the meeting that was a bygone era and would not return.
"Today, the dictatorships of previous decades have given way to democracies, and rivalries that once threatened stability are now past," he said, adding that democratic leaders in the region realized that cooperation was the key to security and economic progress.
"Drug traffickers, smugglers, hostage-takers, terrorists, violent gangs - these are threats that are serious. But our countries are combating them and, together, I believe we can defeat them over time," Rumsfeld said.
"However, it is clear that they can be effectively fought only if countries work together even more closely than we are today."
Over the last year, security concerns have included U.S. worries that anti-aircraft missiles in Nicaragua could fall into "terrorists"' hands and a dispute over navigation rights in a river separating Nicaragua and Costa Rica.
Costa Rica and Panama have no militaries, but want to cooperate loosely with neighbors on common security issues.
Costa Rican Police and Public Security Minister Rogelio Ramos also said his and other mountainous countries in Central America were very vulnerable to natural disasters ranging from hurricanes to earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.
And Panamanian Justice Minister Hector Aleman pressed for closer cooperation in battling arms and other illicit trafficking through the Panama Canal and on the high seas.
Intelligence sharing was essential, Aleman said, noting that thousands of ships that pass through the canal visit ports all over the world "and we have a huge responsibility on our shoulders."
http://en.epochtimes.com/news/5-10-12/33246.html
Join the InvestorsHub Community
Register for free to join our community of investors and share your ideas. You will also get access to streaming quotes, interactive charts, trades, portfolio, live options flow and more tools.
