CHILE MEDIA REPORT - JUNE 26

UNCLAS SANTIAGO 000607

SIPDIS

STATE FOR R/MR, I/PP, WHA/BSC, WHA/PDA, INR/IAA

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KMDR KPAO PGOV ECON PREL SNAR EFIN CI
SUBJECT: CHILE MEDIA REPORT - JUNE 26

Leading Story
--------------

1. The director of Chile's Investigations Police (PDI),Arturo
Herrera, resigned yesterday amid a series of scandals involving PDI
detectives since March.

U.S.-Related News
--------------

2. Editorial: "The President with Obama": President Obama gave
Bachelet a warm welcome. We saw appreciation and mutual respect
between both leaders.... The principles that both countries share,
plus Chile's economic and institutional development, have led both
countries to converge on a modern form of cooperation that includes
non-conventional energy sources, nuclear energy, and especially the
transfer of knowledge.... Taking advantage of this opportunity will
allow Chile to overcome an array of deficiencies in education,
science, and energy.... The meeting between the presidents.... Now
it is time to turn this into concrete actions (El Mercurio,
conservative, influential newspaper-of-record, 6/25).


3. Chilean Ambassador to the U.S. Jose Goni noted that Bachelet is
the second Latin American president that President Obama has
received, which "shows the enormous interest in redefining a policy
toward the region and to look, as he said, 'for a new beginning'"
Goni said there is no date for an Obama visit to Chile (La Segunda,
conservative, afternoon, 6/25).


4. Goni said that "historians will probably see this as the best
period in the history of Chile-U.S. relations, with a very ample
agenda, a strong commercial relationship, and exploration of new
areas of cooperation." With regard to Chile's role in the region,
Goni said the United States -- Obama, Biden, U.S. congressmen and
entrepreneurs -- value not just the government's economic
achievements, but also strongly value the Chilean solution to social
issues "based on economic growth"
Regarding the photograph of the Chilean press with President Obama,
Goni said, "It was something nice, a sign of mutual appreciation
expressed in a rather unusual way under unique circumstances" (La
Segunda, 6/25).


5. Goni on Congresswoman Illeana Rose's criticism of Bachelet with
regard to Cuba: "It was a topic that we knew would come up. I don't
see addressing the topic or the way in which it was brought up as
tactless."


6. Goni on Bachelet's desire to reelect Jose Miguel Insulza to the
OAS: "I see a good disposition on the part of the United States" (La
Segunda, 6/24).


7. Foreign Affairs Minister Mariano Fernandez endorsed Bachelet's
response to congresswoman Illeana Ros-Lehtinen, who criticized her
for not meeting with Cuban dissidents or discussing human rights in
her recent visit to Cuba. Bachelet answered that Chile's approach
is to maintain a direct dialogue with Cuba in order to attain
progress on an array of issues. (El Mercurio, conservative,
influential newspaper-of-record, 6/26).

Chile and the OECD
--------------

8. In his visit to the OECD in Paris, Finance Minister Andres
Velasco said Chile's accession to the organization now depends on
Congress, which must pass bills related to taxes and on corporative
governance of state-owned and private companies (La Nacion,
government-owned, editorially independent, 6/25).

Iran
--------------

9. Editorial: "Iran's Internal Conflict": "The street
demonstrations in Teheran in the past two weeks reveal a deep
division in that society and in its government.... Iran's internal
conflict will probably expand and there is little that the United
States or the West can do.... President Obama has tried to bring his
country closer to the Muslim world.... His criticism of the
repression has been moderate, but yesterday became stronger...
risking his strategy of establishing a dialogue with Teheran.... But
the level of violence shown against the people of Iran called for a
stronger reaction" (La Segunda, 6/25).
SIMONS