EL SALVADOR COMPLAINS ABOUT LACK OF SUPPORT BY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SAN SALVADOR 002415

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/28/2015
TAGS: PREL ES
SUBJECT: EL SALVADOR COMPLAINS ABOUT LACK OF SUPPORT BY
CENTAM NEIGHBORS AT RIO GROUP MEETING


Classified By: DCM Michael A. Butler. Reasons: 1.4 (b,d).


1. (C) During an August 29 meeting with Polcouns, GOES
Vice-Foreign Minister Eduardo Calix expressed frustration
with his Central American counterparts for their
unwillingness to confront anti-U.S. positions at the August
25-26 Rio Group Meeting in Bariloche. Calix said that "the
usual group" of Venezuela, Argentina and Brazil had used the
meeting to push forward a resolution not only condemning Rev.
Pat Robertson's comments on Hugo Chavez, but also placing
responsibility for Robertson's comments on President Bush and
the Republican Party. Calix, who headed the GOES delegation,
said that he was virtually the only participant to speak up
against the resolution, and that none of his Central American
colleagues made the slightest effort to support him. In the
end, Calix said that the resolution, with the original harsh
language, passed. Calix vented that it is very difficult for
El Salvador to continue to oppose the
Venezuela-Argentina-Uruguay strategy of using regional fora
and organizations to attack the U.S., especially when El
Salvador has to do it alone. He wondered whether a little
feedback from the USG to the other CentAm countries might
help get them on the right track.
Barclay