MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Leaders agree to fight poverty at Ibero-American summit

Familary photo of leaders: XVII Ibero-American Summit in Santiago

Leaders from Portugal, Spain, Andorra and 19 Latin American countries agreed to cooperate in promoting democracy and fighting social inequality at the 17th Ibero-American Summit, which ended Saturday in the Chilean capital.

Member states of the Ibero-American Organization signed the Santiago Declaration, vowing to make joint efforts to develop a more united and equal society, as well as strengthen social security and aid. The Action Plan of Santiago was also signed at the summit. Fifteen agreements were reached at the summit, among which are Spain's plan of granting 1.5 billion U.S. dollars to establish a water fund in the next four years, the establishment of a Central American SOS center in Panama, the launching of a 1 million-dollar children's fund in Chile, and the adoption of Multilateral Convention on Social Security, which is expected to benefit 6 million immigrants. A series of declarations were issued at the summit, including Argentina's stand on the issue of Malvinas - Falklands Islands, expanding cooperation among middle income countries, opposing the U.S. blockage against Cuba, fighting terrorism, confronting natural disasters, cracking down on corruption, and declaring the year 2008 as Ibero-American Youth Year. The summit, began on Thursday, also issued a special communiqué urging the Argentine and British governments to start negotiations over the sovereignty of Malvinas Islands, South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands within the framework of the United Nations and the Organization of American States.