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DE RUEHSG #0224/01 0481803
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R 171802Z FEB 10
FM AMEMBASSY SANTIAGO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0904
INFO RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC
RHMFISS/HQ USSOUTHCOM MIAMI FL
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHINGTON DC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHINGTON DC
RUEHAC/AMEMBASSY ASUNCION
RUEHBO/AMEMBASSY BOGOTA
RUEHBR/AMEMBASSY BRASILIA
RUEHBU/AMEMBASSY BUENOS AIRES
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RUEHMN/AMEMBASSY MONTEVIDEO
RUEHPE/AMEMBASSY LIMA
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RUEHSG/AMEMBASSY SANTIAGO

UNCLAS SANTIAGO 000224 
 
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. 17 Meda Report 
 
Lead Story 
 
¶1.      President-elect Sebasti????n Pi????era sold 9.7% of his 
shares in 
Las Condes medical clinic for US$37 million (Financial daily Diario 
Financiero, 2/17). 
 
 
 
Haiti 
 
¶2.      Brazilian Foreign Minister Amorim arrived in Santiago last 
week with two proposals.  He proposed to President-elect Pi????era 
the 
creation of a joint initiative to rebuild public buildings in 
Port-au-Prince.  In another meeting with his Chilean counterpart 
Mariano Fernandez, Amorim submitted a proposal for President 
Bachelet to work with former President Clinton to coordinate 
international aid to Haiti.  Brazil's idea if for Bachelet to act 
as Latin America's representative and eventually add a European 
official (Conservative, independent La Tercera, 2/17). 
 
 
 
¶3.      The underlying goal of Brazil's proposal for Bachelet to 
join Clinton is to create an international cooperation agency for 
the island, in the framework of United Nations.  Bachelet not only 
wants to know more about Lula's proposal, she also wants to hear 
what the U.S. government and Clinton have to say about the 
initiative.  Chile has already approved a Colombian proposal, 
whereby every country in the region would take responsibility for 
one particular region and issue in Haiti.  Meanwhile, La Moneda is 
stirred by rumors that Lula will announce a reconstruction plan for 
Haiti together with President-elect Pi????era (El Mercurio, 2/17) 
 
 
 
Pi????era 
 
¶4.      Last Friday, Pi????era confirmed that the first country he 
would travel to after swearing-in would be Brazil. In that context, 
Pi????era said now he would visit Argentina twice over the next 
weeks: 
Before swearing-in and the following week as he returns from 
Brazil.  His trips are intended as a gesture to Argentine President 
Kirchner, who has sent Pi????era the message that she hopes he would 
follow the steps of his predecessors and visit Buenos Aires before 
traveling to another country (El Mercurio, 2/27). 
 
 
 
¶5.      Sources said that Pi????era will name well-known Concertacion 
officials as undersecretaries.  The acting president of the 
Christian Democratic Party (PDC), Ren????n Fuentealba, said that 
Pi????era's attempt to recruit more people from his party "has no 
other purpose but to destroy" the PDC  party (Conservative, 
independent La Tercera, 2/17). 
 
 
 
¶6.      Pi????era's 9.7% shares of Las Condes medical clinic were 
sold 
yesterday for US$37 million. This is the first company from which 
Pi????era had disassociated himself. His other investments are: 
 
-          100% of television station Chilevision.  He announced 
that he would transfer the station to a non-profit foundation, but 
would retain the authority to name the foundation's board. 
 
-     Lan Chile airlines. There is already an agreement to sell his 
26.3% shares to the Cueto family, but the transaction has not yet 
occurred. 
 
-     Colo Colo soccer team: Pi????era said he would not sell his 
share of the team, but has yet to determine what mechanism he will 
 
use to maintain ownership (Financial Diario Financiero, 2/17). 
 
 
 
Chile-Peru 
 
¶7.      Chile will launch its own Terrestrial Observations 
Satellite System (SSOT, in Spanish) at the end of 2010. But 
Peruvian daily El Comercio expressed concern that the satellite 
would be used for military and intelligence purposes against Peru 
(Afternoon, conservative La Segunda, 2/16). 
 
 
 
Iran 
 
¶8.      Headline:  "Rapid increase in the temperature of the 
nuclear debate -- Iranian President warns that his country would 
respond if the Security Council applies new sanctions" 
 
Subheadline:  U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Michael Mullen 
admitted that military action against Iran "is a possibility," but 
added that what prevails is the search for a diplomatic solution. 
Meanwhile, President Obama announced yesterday the construction of 
the first atomic energy plant in the U.S. in the last thirty years" 
(Government-owned La Nacion, 2/17). 
 
 
 
¶9.      Headline: "Everyone wants Brazil to get involved": The 
Iranian president and a group of U.S. congressmen agreed for Brazil 
to act as mediator in the controversy over Teheran's nuclear 
programs, but for different reasons.  In a press conference, 
Ahmadinejad stressed that Brazil and Iran are similar in that "both 
want to change things."  Republican Congressman Roger Walker, on 
the other hand, said, "It would be good if Brazil and other 
countries can exert more pressure to persuade Iran to leave the 
search for nuclear weapons" (La Nacion, 2/17). 
 
 
 
Greece 
 
¶10.  Editorial:  "The magnitude of the disaster in Greece ... has 
reached unforeseeable levels.... The key now is for the economic 
authorities to realize that this is an economic, political, and 
social dilemma, as citizen demonstrations are showing" (Diario 
Financiero, 2/17). 
 
 
 
Obama-Nuclear Plants 
 
¶11. Headline:  "Obama puts the U.S. back on the path to nuclear 
energy by announcing (the construction of) the first (nuclear) 
plant in 30 years" 
 
The U.S. President intends to come out of the economic crisis using 
alternative energy. Many companies had stopped using this type of 
energy due to the high costs invovled, the opposition of 
environmental groups, and safety issues (El Mercurio, 2/17). 
 
 
 
¶12.  Headline: "Obama announces the first nuclear plant in the 
United States in over 30 years" 
 
Subheadline: The U.S. president will issue guarantees on loans for 
US$8 billion to build two nuclear plants in the state of Georgia. 
The White House hopes to create 3,000 new jobs with this project 
(Diario Financiero, 2/17). 
SIMONS