RESURRECTION OF A CONTINENT

<br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 18pt;"><br /></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: blue; font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Latin America unites in new bloc, US not invited</b></span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">Thirty-three LATIN AMERICAN leaders have come together and formed a new regional bloc, pledging closer economic and political ties. The Community of LATIN AMERICAN and CARIBBEAN STATES (CELAC) pointedly excludes the USA and CANADA.</span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">­On the second day of a summit in the VENEZUELAN capital, Caracas, all LATIN AMERICAN leaders, both right and left, officially signed into effect the formation of the CELAC bloc. The foundation of the bloc has been praised as the realization of the two-centuries-old idea of LATIN AMERICAN “independence” envisioned by Simon Bolivar.</span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">Analysts view CELAC as an alternative to the Washington-based ORGANIZATION OF AMERICAN STATES (OAS) and as an attempt by LATIN AMERICAN countries to reduce US influence in the region.</span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">However Washington does not see CELAC as a replacement to OAS. US Department of State spokesman Mark Toner said the US will continue <i>“to work through the OAS as the pre-eminent multilateral organization, speaking for the hemisphere.”</i></span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Political analysts are of the opinion that the US views CELAC as a potential threat to its hegemony in the region.</b></span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" frameborder="0" height="266" mozallowfullscreen="mozallowfullscreen" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/QvgQdiggLfg?feature=player_embedded" webkitallowfullscreen="webkitallowfullscreen" width="320"></iframe></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">The 33 leaders pledged to withstand the financial crisis that has struck EUROPE and other developed countries. </span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">BRAZIL’S Dilma Rousseff stressed that the LATIN AMERICAN countries would need to rely more on their neighbors amid the global economic turmoil. </span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i>“The economic, financial crisis should be at the center of our concerns,”</i> Rousseff said. She said LATIN AMERICA should<i> “realize that to guarantee its current cycle of development despite the international economic turbulence, it means that every politician must be aware that each one needs the others.”  </i></span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">CHILEAN President Sebastian Pinera, who assumed the initial rotating presidency at CELAC, expressed hopes that the bloc would help build regional cooperation despite the differences between some of the 33 member states.</span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">The leaders also discussed cooperation in the field of drug trafficking and climate change.</span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">CELAC should be a <i>“political union to build a large power center of the 21st century,”</i> the VENEZUELAN president said, stressing strong regional growth as many countries in the region develop closer ties with ASIA or EUROPE and reduce their traditional reliance on the US.</span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">The formation of CELAC was warmly welcomed by rising global power, CHINA. Hu pledged to deepen cooperation with the CELAC and underlined that in the 21st century the relations between CHINA and LATIN AMERICA have seen all-round and fast development with expansion of mutually beneficial cooperation, according to Xinhua news agency. </span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">The countries of CELAC have a combined population of nearly <b>600 MILLION PEOPLE</b>, and a <b>COMBINED GDP OF ABOUT US$6 TRILLION</b> – about a <u>third of the combined output of the US and Canada.</u></span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div>

RESURRECTION OF A CONTINENT

Latin America unites in new bloc, US not invited Thirty-three LATIN AMERICAN leaders have come together and formed a new regional bloc, pled...

Read more »