Joe Biden talks democracy to Latin American leaders
Joe Biden insisted on Wednesday on the need to defend democracy and cooperate for more prosperity, during a Summit of the Americas tarnished by diplomatic disputes.
Joe Biden speaks at the Summit of the Americas on June 8, 2022.
AFP
President Donald Trump calls democracy ‘essential for the future of the Americas,’ at opening ceremony in Los Angeles punctuated by songs and messages from children extolling the natural wonders of the countries of America Latin. “Our region is large and diverse. We don’t always agree on everything. But because we are democracies, we approach our differences with mutual respect and dialogue,” he said.
The regional summit is marked by the absence of certain heads of state, notably from Mexico, Guatemala, Bolivia and Honduras. Mexican President Andrés Manuel Lopez Obrador in particular criticizes the White House for having excluded Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela. The American executive justified this choice by “reservations” in the face of “the lack of democratic space and respect for human rights”.
runoff
Joe Biden also touted Wednesday the launch of a “Partnership of the Americas for Economic Prosperity” to encourage more inclusive growth in Latin America. “What is true in the United States is true in every country. The trickle-down economy does not work,” said the Democrat, who has already criticized this idea several times according to which the enrichment of the wealthiest would automatically lead to that of all economic actors.
The Summit of the Americas is meant to illustrate the Biden administration’s desire to relaunch and renew the relationship with Latin American countries, at a time when China is investing heavily in the region.
Onze visits de Xi Jinping
The Council of Foreign Relations has counted Chinese President Xi Jinping to have visited the region eleven times since taking office in 2013. Joe Biden has not visited Latin America since taking office in January 2021.
But Washington does not intend to respond to China with aggressive financial announcements. “The United States has never seen its advantage in the world as merely raising huge sums of public money,” said top White House diplomatic adviser Jake Sullivan. Rather, the US goal would be to “unlock significant amounts of private funding,” he said.
Immigration
Joe Biden also mentioned the signing, scheduled for Friday, of a “Los Angeles Declaration” on immigration, a major domestic policy issue for the American president. He spoke of an “integrated approach” aimed at “sharing responsibility”, as many migrants arrive at the southern border of the United States.
Summit participants, he said, will make “a common commitment” to both create “opportunities for safe and orderly migration” and “suppress human trafficking.”
On Tuesday, US Vice President Kamala Harris announced private sector commitments totaling $1.9 billion to support job creation in Central America and discourage outflows to the United States.
The summit will also be an opportunity for Joe Biden to have bilateral talks. One of the most watched will take place on Thursday with far-right Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, with whom he will have his first face-to-face meeting. The meeting will be delicate. The White House assures that Joe Biden intends to address the subject of the next elections in Brazil, highly contentious for his Brazilian counterpart. Jair Bolsonaro, who is seeking a second term but who is struggling in the polls, is critical of his country’s electoral system, as if he was already considering contesting a possible defeat.
Published today at 04:35
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