ECUADOR-CHILE: PRESIDENTS SIGN JOINT DECLARATION

UNCLAS QUITO 002746 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PINR PREL EC SUBJECT: ECUADOR-CHILE: PRESIDENTS SIGN JOINT DECLARATION REF: LIMA 5145 ¶1. Summary: During a six hour visit to Ecuador on December 1, Chile's President Ricardo Lagos and President Alfredo Palacio signed seven bilateral agreements and issued a declaration on maritime limits between South American countries on the Pacific. The declaration echoed statements made by both countries' FMs on November 25, rejecting maritime border claims in Peru's Maritime Limits Law passed November 3. Lagos also agreed to invest $430 million in Ecuador's petroleum industry. End Summary. ¶2. President Ricardo Lagos of Chile, on a long-planned farewell visit to Ecuador, met with President Palacio on December 1. The visit, originally scheduled for April of this year, had been postponed due to political instability in Ecuador. GOE and GOC Agree on Maritime Boundaries -------------- ¶3. The two Presidents issued a 52-point joint declaration reiterating that both countries respected the international agreements of 1952 and 1954 on maritime boundaries. For its part, the GOP responded that the GOE-GOC statement lacked legal authority and the agreements of the 1950s did not delineate Peru's maritime border with Chile (RefTel). The Peruvian Congress passed a law on Maritime Limits on November 3 and since then Chile has been working to gain the support of Ecuador for its opposing view. On November 25, during a visit of Chilean FM Ignacio Walker, the Foreign Ministers of both countries issued a joint statement on the maritime issue, offering the same opinion that the 1950s agreements constitute recognition of the maritime border at the corresponding parallel. Their statement was also publicly rejected by Peru's MFA. Chile To Invest in Petroleum -------------- ¶4. The bilateral commercial agreements reached during Lagos' visit include an agreement between Petroecuador and Chile's state petroleum company (ENAP) for Chilean investment in Ecuador's exploration and exploitation of petroleum for $430 million. Chile's investments in Ecuador are currently approximately $500 million. The two countries also signed bilateral agreements on science and technology, labor, children, space activities, foreign trade, and Modernization Councils and the Civil Registry. Cooperation agreements were also reached in the areas of health, tourism, education, and atomic energy. Also, in the declaration, Ecuador expressed interest in joining APEC. Comment -------------- ¶5. The visit by Lagos showcased the GOE-GOC's historically strong ties. It is no surprise that the GOE has sided with Chile against Peru on the issue of maritime limits, since Peruvian law treats both maritime borders equally, raising concern here that, despite the GOP's repeated assurances, Peru could one day make a similar claim against Ecuador. BROWN