[NYTr] Harper Claims Canada is a Model for Latin America
 
Date: Thu, 19 Jul 2007 19:49:48 -0500 (CDT)


Via NY Transfer News Collective  *  All the News that Doesn't Fit
 
The Toronto Star - July 17, 2007
http://www.thestar.com/article/236816

Follow Canada, Harper tells Latin America

By Allan Woods

SANTIAGO - Prime Minister Stephen Harper today invited Latin America to
follow a third-way Canadian model - a model other than that of the
United States or leftist Venezuela - in its road to development.

He said the region, which he is touring on a six-day visit, is at a
"crossroads" and must take long-term steps to boost democracy, grow
economically and enhance security.

"That is why I'm pleased to commit to you today that we are here for
the long haul - as people who share common political values, as
economic business partners, as neighbours," the Prime Minister said in
a luncheon speech in Santiago.

Harper was in Chile to attend a ceremony with President Michelle
Bachelet to mark 10 years of free trade between the two countries. He
said the bilateral relations were a model for what Canada would like to
eventually see with developing countries like Colombia, the Dominican
Republic, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua.

He said Canada's foreign direct investment in the region is worth
$100-billion annually - twice that of Asia.

"Canada is committed to playing a bigger role in the Americas, and to
doing so for the long term."

But the Prime Minister's vision for the region is one of free and open
markets for Canadian goods, and to that end he visited a Canadian bank
operating in Santiago this morning before an official visit with
Bachelet.

On the same theme, he warned about countries in which "we are
witnessing cases of regressive economic policy, dangerous political
conflict and persistent poverty."

Going further, he took a clear swipe at Venezuela's leftist President
Hugo Chavez, and said that countries need not face a black-or-white
choice between economic nationalism and political authoritarianism or
the United States, which has a checkered history in this part of the
hemisphere.

"This, of course, is utter nonsense," Harper said. "Canada's very
existence demonstrates that the choice is a false one."

Harper, a Conservative who has opted for close ties with Republican
U.S. President George W. Bush, emphasized Canada's differences with the
U.S. in areas of culture, social, and political policy.

"It is not in our past, nor within our power, to conquer or to
dominate," Harper said.

                                    ***

Bloomberg - July 17, 2007
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601082&sid=aXvFnvq6UpuE

Harper Says Canada Can Act as Model for Latin America

By Theophilos Argitis

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper said the U.S. and Venezuela are
not the only models for developing Latin American countries, touting
his own nation as an example for the region.

``Some in the hemisphere are led to believe that their only choices, if
I can be so bold to say, are to return to the syndrome of economic
nationalism, political authoritarianism and class warfare, or to become
`just like the United States,''' Harper told a business audience today
in Santiago. ``Canada's very existence demonstrates that the choice is
a false one.''

As leader of the Western Hemisphere's second-biggest economy after the
U.S., Harper is using a four-nation tour of Latin America and the
Caribbean to ``re-engage'' Canada with like-minded countries and
bolster trade and investment. The trip comes as Canadian companies are
seeking ways to reduce their dependence on the slowing U.S. economy as
a surging currency makes their goods less competitive in that market.

``We have in Latin America now two major forces,'' Bank of Nova Scotia
Chief Executive Richard Waugh said today as Harper was visiting a
branch in Santiago. ``We have the forces of free markets and
democracies and then we have other forces you see coming out of other
countries. Hopefully we as a country and businesses in Canada will make
opportunities to show the way.''

Harper told his audience that while market-based economies are the best
way to fuel growth, Latin American countries can maintain their own
identities and independence along the way. He cited Canada's universal
public health care system, national pension plan, and ``tradition of
order and community values.''

Partnerships

The 48-year-old leader said he'll promote that model in Latin America
through partnerships with countries committed to economic freedom.

He and Chilean President Michelle Bachelet today signed an accord under
which Canada, the biggest energy exporter among Group of Seven
countries, and Chile pledged to cooperate in areas such as energy and
the environment. The two countries also agreed to expand their
10-year-old free-trade agreement to cover financial services.

Yesterday, Harper and Colombian President Alvaro Uribe began free-trade
talks in Bogota.

Harper will be in Barbados tomorrow and Haiti on Friday before he
returns to Ottawa. 
       
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