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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