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02/15/2006:
"Bush's Mexican Poodle"
by John RossIf international diplomacy were a wrestling match, Fox Vs Latin America would be an apt sub--title for Mexico's foreign relations imbroglios in 2006. During the five years plus he has been in office, the Mexican president has taken on the leaders of the Latin American Left one by one, starting with Fidel Castro, with whom he once broke off diplomatic relations.
Diplomatic relations with Cuba were once again endangered last week (Feb 5th) when the Mexican president failed to act after the U.S.--owned Sheraton Hotel chain canceled the reservations of a high--powered Cuban delegation in Mexico City to negotiate with Texas oil companies. The Cubans were kicked out of the swank Sheraton Isabel under the provisions of the Helms--Burton "trading with the enemy" act. Although U.S. laws are not applicable in Mexico, Fox failed to lodge a diplomatic protest with Washington,
Fox's aggressive defense of free trade and the neo--liberal model now rejected by Latin America often makes it appear that he is carrying Washington's water. This was most recently displayed at the Mar de Plata Summit of the Americas in November when the Mexican president tried to force endorsement of George Bush's beloved Free Trade Area of the Americas (ALCA in its Spanish acronym), which would extend the dubious benefits of the North American Free Trade Agreement all the way to Tierra del Fuego. With Fox on the floor, "we don’t have to do much work ourselves" U.S. undersecretary for Western Hemisphere Affairs Tom Scanlon told the Argentinean daily Clarin.
counterpunch.org
