MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Ibero-American summit committed to less rhetoric

Latin America leaders are gathering in the Spanish city of Salamanca for Friday's Ibero-American summit which they have pledged to give greater impetus, beyond rhetoric and effectively turning the event into an accomplishment.

The two days summit will concentrate on three main issues, socio-economic situation in the region, immigration and the role of Ibero-America in the world.

The declaration to be signed Saturday by the heads of state and government of Ibero-American nations was hammered out Wednesday by the national coordinators and Thursday by foreign ministers in a preview of the great event.

Among the special chapters to be included in the final declaration are one from Colombia on peace efforts; Spain on gender-based violence; Cuba calling for an end to the US blockade and support for Venezuela's extradition request from US of terrorist Luis Posada Carriles; Venezuela on Latin American and Caribbean integration; Argentina in connection with the Falkland Islands and Panama on the high cost of energy and the foreign debt.

Uruguay's Enrique Iglesias, head of the newly created Ibero-American General Secretariat, told reporters that starting in Salamanca, an effort would be made to "reduce the rhetorical discussions" and move from word to deeds.

Colombian President Alvaro Uribe one of the participants who arrived Thursday, complained while still in Colombia that such meetings "are odious because they amount to presidential tourism".

Mr. Uribe added that the international agenda includes "too many" summits scheduled "too closely" and underlined he was taking part "because it's my job".

The permanent secretariat, which was created to energize, give continuity and implement mandates emerging from the summits, will have an initial budget of 6.3 million US dollars.

Nevertheless Mr. Iglesias who until last September was president of the Washington seated Interamerican Development Bank admitted that the new body was "not yet ready to submit a detailed working plan". The document will now be presented at the summit in Uruguay next year after consultations with the different governments.

Disenchantment in Latinamerica with regional summits is not new but usually it's kept quiet. The Ibero-American summit was first launched in 1991.

Mr. Uribe a no-nonsense, outspoken president who has survived several attempts on his life by Colombian Marxist guerrillas in combination with the drug cartels has so far been the most caustic, although he insisted that "Ibero-American summits which also include European Spanish and Portuguese speaking countries "must become useful."

Most of the leaders from the 22 countries in Ibero-America, plus Portugal and host Spain will be present.

Guatemala's Oscar Berger, Salvador's Tony Saca, Nicaragua's Enrique Bolaños and Ecuador's Alfredo Palacio will not be at the summit.

At last moment it was announced President Fidel Castro from Cuba will not be travelling to Spain. Castro last attended an Ibero-American Summit in 2000 in Panama City when an attempt on his life was foiled.

Berger and Saca said they could not attend due to the recent natural disasters in their countries, while Bolaños and Palacio face political crises