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CARIBBEAN: Region Set to Defy U.S. in Security Council Race

Bert Wilkinson

GEORGETOWN, Guyana, Jun 27 2006 (IPS) - When the United States threw its backing behind Mexico for the top position of the 34-nation Organisation of American States (OAS) last year, it appeared not to factor in the determination of the Caribbean Community (Caricom) and leftist Latin American nations to go the other way.

After five tied rounds of voting, the hemispheric body abandoned the elections and set a date for new polls. This was rendered unnecessary when Luis Ernesto Derbez of Mexico withdrew his candidacy once it became clear Washington had lost interest in the race for secretary general.

As a result, Jose Miguel Insulza of Chile was easily crowned secretary general. All Caricom nations voted for Insulza. Not once did they flinch, having made up their minds at a foreign ministers meeting in Guyana months earlier that the Chilean was a better candidate.

Now, the situation seems set to repeat itself in the race for the non-permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council.

Guatemala and Venezuela are readying themselves for a protracted slugfest for the seat in the powerful world body, with Washington and Central America lining up behind Guatemala, and many of the Caribbean and South American nations indicating their support for Venezuela.

From all indications, Caricom and many of the South Americans are on course to once again ignore the urgings of the U.S. on a key geopolitical issue. This is in spite of backroom and even overt lobbying from the George W. Bush administration to persuade Caribbean nations to throw their hat in the ring to support Guatemala – with which the region barely has relations.


Aware that it now needs the region more than ever, Guatemala has moved to open a diplomatic mission in Port of Spain, Trinidad and is eyeing other venues in what is being interpreted as a clear move by the Central American nation to make friends and influence people, albeit at this eleventh hour.

On the other hand, while many in governmental and diplomatic circles are not that comfortable with the almost daily diatribes of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez against Washington, they argue that ties with Venezuela have been growing at a rapid pace in recent years.

Contacts include its multi-million-dollar assistance to Grenada after it was devastated by Hurricane Ivan in late 2004, its financing of a Cuban-executed eye care programme through which Caribbean nationals are treated free of cost at Cuban hospitals, and agreements with nearly all 15 Caricom member states to sell concession oil under the controversial Petro Caribe scheme that leaders signed in Jamaica last year.

The U.S. still wants Caricom to back Guatemala. But even as the lobbying continues, Guatemala’s neighbour Belize has thrown a spanner in the works by formally asking its Caricom sister states to not even think of backing Guatemala because of a continuing border dispute.

“Belize is unable to support a candidate like Guatemala for a non-permanent seat on the Security Council until a just and honorable resolution of its territorial dispute with Guatemala is arrived at,” government officials said in a recent note to Caribbean leaders, as it made a case for any country but Guatemala.

Caribbean states are likely to line up behind Belize in part because of their obvious closer relations, the leftovers of British colonialism, and owing to Guatemala’s aggressive attitude in the border dispute with Belize, in addition to the formal request from Belmopan.

The U.S. argues that Caracas cannot be trusted to have the rotating Latin American seat because it is likely to support Iran’s quest to become a nuclear power and may also vote the other way on controversial issues involving U.S. foreign policy, Iraq and North Korea among them, charges Venezuela denies.

For its part, Belize wonders what Guatemala’s position would be if their territorial dispute comes up at the Security Council while it is a two-year member. An obvious conflict of interest would arise, Belizean diplomats say.

Calling for time out, Jamaican Foreign Minister Anthony Hylton says Caribbean leaders would discuss the issue at their annual summit in St. Kitts starting on Jul. 3, with the pressure now mounting from four sides – Belize, Guatemala, Venezuela and the U.S.

He says Jamaica’s position would be based on “principle within the context of Jamaica’s good neighbour policy and only after careful assessment of the implications for Jamaica’s national interest.”

So far, Venezuela has refused to back out of the race for the seat to be vacated by Argentina in the last quarter of this year. It already has the backing of Cuba, Brazil, Bolivia and Argentina. Other continental nations say they will show their hands in the coming weeks.

Chile, which had Venezuela’s support at the OAS, has already been warned that while it may get F-16 fighter jets from the U.S., Washington won’t train its pilots to fly the aircraft if Caracas gets its vote. President Hugo Chavez has called the growing battle a” David versus Goliath issue.” Colombia, the U.S.’s best ally in South America, has already announced it will vote with Washington.

U.S. concerns rose sharply recently when Syria threw its backing behind Venezuela recently, pushing many in Washington to see the race as a coalition of radical nations against it and its allies.

Venezuela is stepping up its lobby of friendly nations to avoid the issue going to an open vote at the general assembly in September, where the situation could get even trickier.

 
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