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FM AMEMBASSY SANTIAGO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0723
INFO RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC
RHMFISS/HQ USSOUTHCOM MIAMI FL
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHINGTON DC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC
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UNCLAS SANTIAGO 000152 
 
SIPDIS 
STATE FOR R/MR, I/PP, WHA/BSC, WHA/PDA, INR/IAA 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ECON KMDR KPAO PGOV PREL SNAR EFIN CI
SUBJECT: Santiago Feb. 5 Media Report 
 
February 5 
 
 
 
Lead 
 
¶1.      Fear over the instability of Europe's economies and numbers 
that did not fulfill the expectation of financial analysts caused a 
drop in stock markets worldwide.  Investors sought refuge in the 
dollar (Financial daily Diario Financiero, 2/5) 
 
 
 
Chile-U.S. 
 
¶2.   Secretary of the Treasury Timothy Geithner and Chilean Finance 
Minister Andr????s Velasco signed a tax treaty between Chile and the 
United States that will end taxation of Chilean citizens and 
businesses in the United States.  At the signing ceremony Geithner 
underscored Chile's economic progress to justify the agreement 
(Conservative, influential El Mercurio, 2/5). 
 
 
 
¶3.   Negotiations for the bilateral tax agreement between Chile and 
the United States began ten years ago, but finally concluded due to 
the changes made to Chilean legislation as part of the process 
required to join the OECD (Conservative, afternoon La Segunda, 
2/4). 
 
 
 
¶4.   Chilean Ambassador to United Nations Heraldo Mu????oz awarded 
Barbara Walters the O'Higgins Medal for her contributions to 
journalism, gender equality, and her close ties to Chile and 
President Bachelet (La Tercera, 2/5). 
 
 
 
¶5.   Article on PAS International Visitor Leadership Program:  The 
former presidents of the student federation of the University of 
Chile, University of Concepcion, and the director of Marco 
Enriquez-Ominami's digital presidential campaign Federico Huneeus, 
Francisco Rodriguez, and Javier Sajuria, respectively, are visiting 
the United States invited by the Department of State to learn about 
the U.S. political system. Highlights of their program thus far 
have been a meeting with president Obama's campaign chief David 
Plouffe and their visit to the Newseum to listen to Secretary 
Clinton speak on Internet Freedom.  This was the same speech that 
enraged China for its decision to censor Google (Diario Financiero, 
2/5). 
 
 
 
U.S.-Brazil 
 
¶6.   President Obama will travel to Brazil in the second half of 
2010, due to the differences with Brazil regarding the crisis in 
Honduras and the deployment of U.S. troops to military bases in 
Colombia (Diario Financiero, 2/5). 
 
 
 
Haiti 
 
¶7.   The civilian chief of the U.N. Mission to Haiti (Minustah), 
Edmond Mulet, said the international community must change the way 
it is operating in Haiti if it wants to solve the problems with the 
distribution of aid (Government-owned, La Nacion, 2/5). 
 
 
 
¶8.  The U.N. named Chilean General Carlos Mezzano deputy commander 
of the U.N. military force in Haiti.  He will replace General 
Ricardo Toro (La Nacion, 2/5). 
 
¶9.  The ten Americans detained for trying to illegally remove 30 
children from Haiti were charged with abduction of minors and 
associating with criminals.  Since the crime was committed in the 
island, "they will be tried in Haiti," said Justice Minister Paul 
Denis (La Nacion, 2/5). 
 
 
 
Chile Economy 
 
¶10.  Ernst & Young rated Chile the most globalized country in Latin 
America and 27th worldwide.  The ranking considers variable such as 
commercial openness and capital flow - where Chile ranked very well 
- and exchange of technology and ideas and cultural integration, 
where it ranked poorly (La Tercera, 2/5). 
 
 
 
Editorial 
 
¶11. "The Obama administration is at a crossroads.  It must balance 
the need to keep the fiscal stimulus programs launched last year... 
to counter the effects of the economic crisis, while at the same 
time not let the national debt expand to the point where it 
threatens the country's economic competitiveness, which could 
weaken its position as a world power. The need to control the debt 
to maintain the economic foundation of U.S. power must be Obama's 
most important goal, but thus far we see no glimpse of a consensus 
or political will in the population at large to accept the 
sacrifices necessary to face the problem"  (Conservative, afternoon 
la Segunda, 2/4). 
URBAN