VZCZCXYZ0009
OO RUEHWEB

DE RUEHBU #2035/01 2842038
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 112038Z OCT 07
FM AMEMBASSY BUENOS AIRES
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 9469
INFO RHMFISS/CDR USSOCOM MACDILL AFB FL//SCJ2//
RULGPUA/USCOMSOLANT

UNCLAS BUENOS AIRES 002035 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR INR/R/MR, I/GWHA, WHA, WHA/PDA, WHA/BSC, 
WHA/EPSC 
CDR USSOCOM FOR J-2 IAD/LAMA 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KPAO OPRC KMDR PREL
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION; ARMENIAN GENOCIDE; US-LATIN AMERICAN TIES; 
SIMILARITIES BETWEEN CUBA AND MYANMAR; 10/11/07 
 
 
¶1. SUMMARY STATEMENT 
 
Today's leading international stories include implications of a US 
House committee vote to condemn the mass killings of Armenians in 
Turkey in World War I as an act of genocide; prospects for the 
US-Latin American relationship; and similarities between the 
military regimes in Cuba and Myanmar. 
 
¶2. OPINION PIECES AND EDITORIALS 
 
- "A Turning Point" 
 
Marcelo Cantelmi, international editor of leading "Clarn," writes 
(10/11) "While one should be cautious, the outcome of the dispute 
between the White House and Capitol Hill (over the Armenian 
genocide) foretells a serious loss of power for the Bush 
administration. The issue worsens if one bears in mind that the 
dispute will strain the alliance between the USG and Turkey in the 
context of the failed war in Iraq. 
 
 
"Rather than freeing (Turkey's) hands, what happened in Washington 
could further complicate Turkey's goal to enter Europe, which is 
already clouded by its unwillingness to acknowledge the Armenian 
genocide during the Ottoman Empire. 
 
"It will be a tough road without the concrete support of the US, 
which would not tolerate more chaos in the (Persian) Gulf. 
 
"However, the turning point has a profound ethical dimension. It 
shows that the massacre of over one million and a half human beings 
may no longer be overlooked or used as a political tool, which is 
far from the inalienable right to justice." 
 
- "A change for Latin America?" 
 
Jorge Sosa, political editor of business-financial "El Cronista," 
comments (10/11) "Riordan Roett, head of Latin American Studies at 
John Hopkins University, said: 'Unluckily for Latin America, all 
Democratic candidates have switched to protectionist positions as 
far as trade is concerned.' Consensus among analysts (and even in 
the view of members of the Bush administration) is that no radical 
change will take place in the US-Latin American relationship, whose 
agenda is dominated by the Cuban issue, the problem of immigration 
and the US-promoted bilateral free trade deals with several 
countries. 
 
"The problem of failed immigration reform... is a thorny issue in 
the election campaign, to the point that Republicans have avoided 
debating this point. Roett explains: 'This is an unpopular issue and 
it is unclear what position Hillary will adopt on the new 
legislation after elections.' 
 
"The relationship with Brazil and the possibility of making progress 
in developing a strategic alliance on bio-fuels is one of the 
pillars of the US relationship with the region, while the Venezuela 
of Hugo Chvez is a red alarm. 
 
"In the view of analyst Michael Shifter, contrary to expectations, 
'it will be hard to find a president with the commitment to the 
region that Bush has had.' 
 
"Nonetheless, the focus of US policy on Iraq and the Middle East has 
certainly contributed to increasing the distance. For this reason, 
and as a result of the American society's dissatisfaction with the 
Iraq issue and Washington's need for new allies, expectations are 
that 'there will be a much more multilateral approach to US foreign 
policy, which could bring an indirect beneficial impact' on Latin 
America. In fact, the Iraq problem and the conflict between Arabs 
and Palestinians will remain priorities for the White House. For 
instance, yesterday, Hillary made it clear that she does not see a 
date for the withdrawal of troops from Baghdad. 
 
"According to Jos Ral Perales, an analyst at the Woodrow Wilson 
Center, 'there is an opportunity for a more constructive 
relationship.' 
 
"For many, Argentina is missing from the debate at least for now." 
 
- "Myanmar is just like Cuba" 
 
Daily-of-record "La Nacisn" (10/11) editorializes "... There is 
practically no individual freedom in Burma and its government 
actively thwarts every freedom. In Burma, just as in Cuba, any 
meeting of a number of people is illegal as well as every expression 
of opposition to the Government. It is impossible to freely access 
phones or Internet and the imprisonment of dissident journalists, 
 
artists or ordinary citizens is regular practice... 
 
"On economic matters, just as in Cuba, Myanmar exercises arbitrary 
control on prices, foreign trade, property, foreign investment and 
markets in general, and this is why it is not surprising that, 
according to Transparency International, Myanmar is the most corrupt 
country in the world along with Somalia. 
 
"Interestingly enough, just one week before the bloody repression of 
opponents in Myanmar was made public, FM U. Nyan Win, from Myanmar, 
and Cuban FM Felipe Prez Roque met in Havana... and Prez Roque 
said that 'Myanmar is, just like Cuba, a free country that has to 
confront an unfair and unequal world, in which it is hard for our 
countries to access social and economic development.' 
 
"... In fact, the thing that is difficult for the military regimes 
of Cuba and Myanmar is to lose their privileges, open up to 
democracy and stop chasing, imprisoning and killing opponents." 
 
To see more Buenos Aires reporting, visit our 
classified website at: 
http://www.state.sqov.gov/p/wha/buenosaires 
 
WAYNE