[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 33, Number 19 (Monday, May 12, 1997)]
[Pages 674-682]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
The President's News Conference With Central American Leaders in San 
Jose

May 8, 1997

    President Figueres. Good afternoon, friends. I wish to express on 
behalf of the heads of states and of government of Central America and 
the Dominican Republic how pleased we are with the results of the 
extraordinary work session we have had this morning with President 
Clinton. It has been a very sincere dialog, a very realistic dialog, a 
very human dialog, and especially, a very friendly dialog.
    I would like to share with you four main conclusions which are the 
outcome of our discussions and which are reflected in the joint 
declaration which we have just signed. First of all, we've inaugurated a 
new phase, a new stage in the relations among our countries. We attach a 
very special importance to this alliance. It reflects a new visional 
mood, a more optimistic one, a more mature one, and a more propositional 
one. And it also demonstrates the existence of a shared agenda, the 
fundamental objective of which is the well-being of our peoples through 
the consolidation of economies which are more and more open and 
integrated. And we have ratified this will.
    Secondly, we wish to emphasize the brotherly spirit, the friendship 
and the understanding which have prevailed in our discussion of topics 
which we knew were sensitive and complex. We have made a special effort 
to reach agreements, to compromise and to understand the realities which 
our Governments face. Beyond those realities, we found a will to work 
together, and we have opened areas for this dialog to continue and for 
our collective action.
    Third, we underlined the importance of having maintained, as a 
constant concern of this meeting, the social issues, the importance of 
which for Latin America and for our region is more vital today than ever 
before. We share a special concern with the more needy, a concern which 
reflects solidarity, not charity, as a means to generate opportunities 
for productive employment and to ensure the dignified life which our 
peoples demand.
    I especially wish to recognize the contribution of women to the 
developing of economic democracy and how urgent it is to guarantee 
nondiscriminatory treatment for them in the workplaces, in political 
life, and in social relations generally. All this should have a 
significant impact in the improvement of the quality of life of the 
coming generations.
    Finally, we wish to stress the significant role which environmental 
issues continue to have on our agenda. We have deepened and expanded the 
scope of the joint declaration of Central America and the United States, 
CONCAUSA, and in doing so, we have helped our region move even further 
forward as one of those regions which are noted throughout the world for 
their commitment to the rational use and intelligent use of our natural 
resources. In this regard, we can state that the decisions we've adopted 
in this field

[[Page 675]]

in this declaration can be characterized as revolutionary at a 
hemispherical level.
    An essential element to attain institutional strengthening and to 
ensure good governance of our countries has to do with the possibility 
of expanding our markets and stimulating investments which generate 
employment and improve the quality of life. I believe that with respect 
to both topics, free trade and investment, we have moved forward in an 
impressive manner in attaining a better understanding and in acceptance 
that reciprocity should be the new byword in the establishment of all 
our discussions.
    Ladies and gentlemen, the President and the Prime Minister of Belize 
and the Dominican Republic would like to make a special mention to the 
democratic circumstance that prevails in all the region: We are 
committed to strengthen and perfecting it.
    We are aware that, at the threshold of the 21st century, it is not 
enough to guarantee access to free, fair, and transparent elections for 
our citizens. Threatened by formidable enemies such as narcotrafficking 
and organized crime, it is indispensable to fortify democratic 
institutions and to ensure ways in which civil society can participate 
more effectively in the decisionmaking process.
    Nonetheless, it is through the development of dynamic economies and 
more equitable social structures that we will be able to fully grasp the 
benefits of democratic governance. To this regard, we are convinced that 
one indispensable element to ensure such democratic governance has to do 
with the possiblity to expand our markets and, with it, stimulate 
investments that generate employment and improve the quality of life of 
our populations.
    Both issues, trade and investment, were positively reinforced during 
our meeting with President Clinton, and we would like to emphasize our 
satisfaction as the new criteria that will guide our next steps towards 
the construction of free-trade zones in the Americas.
    In closing, let me emphasize the warmth of this meeting. You, 
President Clinton, with your insight and your thoughtfulness, have come 
to Central America and with our friends from the Dominican Republic have 
given a new dimension to our relations. We all came here with high 
expectations, We had the opportunity to share our thoughts but express 
the feelings of our hearts. And we all part full of optimism, ready to 
continue our work, work that is circumscribed by the need we all have to 
continue bettering the conditions of living of our people.
    Thank you very much.
    President Clinton. President Figueres has given an excellent 
statement. I will just make a few brief comments. First of all, I know I 
speak for all of us who are guests here in thanking the President and 
the people of Costa Rica for their warmth and hospitality.
    This is truly a new day for Central America. The transition from 
conflict to cooperation has changed the relationship among the Central 
American countries and between the United States and Central America. A 
decade ago, we focused on civil wars. Now, together, we are fighting 
against poverty and fighting for prosperity, stronger democracy, and the 
sustainable development of our precious resources.
    It is this new reality, this new agenda that we share which brings 
us here to San Jose for the first summit meeting between the leaders of 
the United States, Central America, and the Dominican Republic in 30 
years. The people of Central America have chosen peace and democracy. We 
must help them to prove that they made the right choice, that democracy 
delivers.
    Today, we agreed to an intensified ongoing dialog between the United 
States, Central America, and the Dominican Republic to work together on 
issues that will make a real difference to the lives of all our people 
with a high level, follow-on structure to make sure that our commitments 
are realized.
    Together we looked at ways to strengthen our democracies and to 
combat the drugs, crime, and corruption that threaten to undermine them. 
I'm encouraged by the growing cooperation among Central American law 
enforcement authorities, including the creation of a joint center for 
police studies in El Salvador. To advance it further, the United States 
plans to establish an international law enforcement academy in Latin 
America by the end of this year, modeled on our successful academy in 
Budapest. We also agreed

[[Page 676]]

to modernize extradition treaties and to apply them vigorously. Those 
who commit a crime in one nation in our region should know that they 
will have no place to run and hide elsewhere in the region.
    We took important steps to broaden the benefits of open and 
competitive trade. Our trade with Central America exceeded $20 billion 
last year. That is a 120-percent increase since 1990. This dramatic 
increase is the direct result of the progress the nations of this region 
have made toward improving their economies and opening their markets.
    To identify concrete actions we can take to expand commerce even 
more, and to explore ways to move toward our common goal of a free trade 
area of the Americas by 2005, we created a ministerial level trade and 
investment council.
    The open skies agreement we signed today--the first in our 
hemisphere--are a powerful example of how we can move forward together. 
They will allow our air carriers greater freedom to increase passenger 
and cargo services, to lower prices for travelers and shippers, and 
literally to bring the Americas closer together.
    Today, we also agreed that our labor ministers will meet later this 
year to exchange ideas on promoting respect for worker rights and 
improving working conditions. And we discussed the issue of immigration. 
I'm proud that the United States has a tradition of generous legal 
immigration. Last year, over 900,000 people legally immigrated to the 
United States. I will do what I can to preserve it because I believe 
America's diversity is one of our greatest strengths as we move into a 
new century in an increasingly global society.
    But to maintain that tradition and to do what is right by people who 
immigrate to the United States legally, it is also necessary that we be 
more effective in stopping illegal immigration. Our new immigration law 
is designed to accomplish that objective. I appreciate the decision by 
several Central American nations to criminalize the terrible practice of 
alien smuggling, which is also a scourge to all of us.
    I do want you to know that enforcing our laws, I am determined to 
balance the need for firm controls against illegal immigration with 
common sense and compassion. Our country has greatly benefitted from the 
talents and the energies of Central Americans who came to our shores 
because they were fleeing civil war. Today, the remarkable progress in 
that region means that many can return home. But we want that to occur 
in a manner which avoids destabilizing the nations and the economies of 
Central America, or creating enormous hardships for children and 
families.
    There will be no mass deportations and no targeting of Central 
Americans under this law. I am working with Congress to implement the 
new law so that it does not produce these unintended results.
    Finally, we explored ideas to make a good education the birthright 
of every child in this region. We agreed that education should be a 
centerpiece of next year's Summit of the Americas in Santiago, for which 
today's summit is an important building block.
    This has been a full and a productive session. Again, let me thank 
my colleagues for the passion and the depth of commitment they bring to 
this enterprise, and to our shared vision for a new partnership between 
the United States and Central America on the brink of a new century. 
Thank you very much.

NAFTA Membership

    Q. Good afternoon. Thank you very much, Mr. President. I have two 
questions. For you, Mr. President Figueres, I'd like to know, within the 
declaration, in the chapter on strengthening democracy and good 
governance, I'd like to know what should be understood in the paragraph 
that says that we take on the commitment to update our extradition 
treaty and apply it vigorously to make sure that criminals are taken to 
justice, where the effects of their crime are felt more severely.
    If we are dealing here with a paragraph that is somehow suggesting 
for the future any possibility of extraditing our citizens--
[inaudible]--that the Central American contingency meet in order to be 
considered by your country to be part of the free trade agreement and if 
so, if we are, after Chile, the next one--[inaudible].
    President Clinton. I was listening--[inaudible]--you started talking 
in Spanish.

[[Page 677]]

    Q. Okay, so here again. My question is--[inaudible]--[laughter].
    President Clinton. It's been a long day. [Laughter]
    Q. Thank you. What do you think the conditions that Central American 
countries should meet in order to be considered by your country to be 
part of the Free Trade Agreement, and if we do meet those requirements, 
are we the next after Chile? Thank you.
    President Figueres. The biggest--[inaudible]--is that respecting our 
constitutions and the independence of the branches of government in our 
countries, the judiciary and the legislative. We will continue 
cooperating in these areas which have to do with ensuring citizen 
security. And in accordance with our responsibility as Presidents with 
respect to our population, I think we should work out together combating 
drug trafficking, money laundering, and these modern scourges which have 
been developing in our societies and which can only cause harm to our 
societies.
    This is a reaffirmation of our will to continue working in that 
direction, with respect to our constitutions and to our legal 
provisions. We are all states under the rule of law, fortunately.
    President Clinton. I would like to make one comment about that from 
the point of view of the United States. We do not believe that our 
sovereignty is undermined by extraditing people through our countries as 
long as they follow the same rules with us, so that we both respect each 
other's criminal justice system.
    Now, let me answer your question. First of all, I believe that the 
nations of Central America have already gone a long way toward becoming 
part of a free-trade area by embracing democracy, open markets, and 
committing themselves to expanded trade, and committing themselves to 
increasing international cooperation. After all, we have the President 
of the Inter-American Development Bank here, we have the Secretary 
General of the OAS here. We are all working together more. We are 
committed already, the United States is, to working with all the nations 
that are here present to establish a free-trade area of the Americas by 
2005, which is not so very far away.
    Now, in between now and then, can we do more to have reciprocal open 
trade with the Central American countries? I believe we can, and I have 
agreed to two steps. The first is that we have set up a ministerial 
trade and investment council here, as a result of this communique, to 
identify what the next concrete steps are. But, before that, I have 
proposed in my budget an expansion of the Caribbean Basin Initiative, 
and I have funded it over the next 5 years, which would permit us to 
reduce or eliminate tariffs on a large number of other items coming from 
Central America that would further deepen our trade relations.
    So, I'm strongly supportive of it. I think the big steps have 
already been taken. The next steps are subject to agreement by our trade 
negotiators and people who are concerned about investment. And they can 
be worked out if we stay on the path we're on.
    Terry [Terence Hunt, Associated Press]

Central American-U.S. Relations

    Q. Mr. President, some of the leaders here today and some other 
prominent Central American figures have complained in recent days that 
the United States pays attention to this region only in times of war and 
in times of natural disaster. Do you think that that has been a valid 
criticism?
    And to President Figueres, what, if anything, has President Clinton 
said today that makes you think that that attitude would change?
    President Clinton. Well, first of all, I think there is some 
validity to that criticism--that is, I think there are some sectors of 
our society that may have been more interested in Central America when 
it was a battleground in the cold war or when it could at least be 
interpreted to have been a battleground in the cold war. But I don't 
think it's a fair characterization of America as a whole or of the 
attitude of this administration.
    After all, we convened the Summit of the Americas including all the 
democratically elected leaders of Central America and the Caribbean and 
the rest of Latin America in 1994. We have worked diligently since then

[[Page 678]]

in meeting with and working with various leaders in this area. We have 
worked for the cause of peace in Central America and applauded it when 
it prevailed.
    And this meeting here, which as I said, is the first time since 1968 
when President Johnson met with the leaders of Central America, the 
Dominican Republic that such a meeting has occurred, and this one has a 
different agenda. This is designed to send the message that we believe 
it is in the interest of the United States and the people of the United 
States, as well as the right thing to do, to have an economic and a 
political partnership with Central America as we move into the new 
century.
    President Figueres. I--[inaudible]--to this meeting with a 
completely different perspective of what our relationship should be. The 
old relationship that we have had in the past is no longer the one that 
can most benefit us in the world of a globalized economy. And today, we 
have all come as true partners to share the responsibilities of our 
development and to look for common paths through which we can develop. 
Central America today, fully democratic and in peace, is willing to pull 
its own weight, and we are perfectly well aware of the responsibilities 
in that respect that we have as leaders of our nations. This is truly 
the beginning of a great new partnership.
    Q. Good afternoon, Presidents. For President Clinton. The countries 
of Central America have been complaining--complaining that the United 
States has abandoned Central America lately. Aside from progressively, 
steadily liberalizing trade, in what other way could the United States 
help the people of Central America--for meetings such as this not be 
considered as social events with rather rhetorical results that have 
nothing to do with reality?
    President Clinton. Well, I think there are lots of specific ways we 
can work with Central America apart from trade, and I mentioned one in 
my remarks. We intend to establish a law enforcement academy in Latin 
America that will serve the people of Central America in helping them to 
develop professional police forces that are effective and respects human 
rights and effective judicial systems.
    We did this in Central Europe, with one in Budapest, and we have 
worked with a lot of former communist countries in the area of law 
enforcement cooperation in a way that has been extraordinarily well 
received there, and I believe will be here.
    Last night when President Figueres and I had a chance to meet, and 
again today in our larger meeting, I reaffirmed our willingness to work 
with countries of Central America to help to expand educational 
opportunities and to bring the benefits of educational technology to all 
students. And I think there are great opportunities there. I think there 
are enormous opportunities for us to cooperate in the environmental 
areas in ways that will be helpful to the long-term stability of the 
nations that are represented here.
    So those are just three areas in which I expect there to be 
significantly increased cooperation in the years ahead. In addition to 
that, as you know, we still have some modest aid programs. The Peace 
Corps is active in many of these nations, doing very constructive 
things. So I expect that there will be other things which will be done 
in the years ahead.
    Keep in mind, the United States has finally voted for the first time 
since 1969--at least we have an agreement with the leaders of the 
Congress--to balance our budget. And that will permit us the freedom and 
the economic stability, I think, to be a better partner with our 
neighbors in a whole range of other areas. But the most important thing 
is for you to prove that your economy will work. And I think the plan 
we're following will enable you to do that.
    Paul [Paul Basken, United Press International].

Immigration Law

    Q. Mr. President, Central American leaders before this meeting were 
saying the new U.S. immigration laws are causing major economic and 
political headaches. A State Department official was quoted today as 
saying that, given the situation in Congress, all you have been able to 
offer them today was ``words and promises and hot air.'' Did that turn 
out to be true, and what do you realistically expect to get from 
Congress on immi

[[Page 679]]

gration between now and the date of September 30th, set out in the 
statement today?
    And, for President Figueres, if you could, are the Central American 
leaders overreacting to the situation?
    President Clinton. Well, first of all, let's describe what the 
situation is. There are a lot of immigrants living in the United States 
from the countries that are represented here today who came to the 
United States primarily because of upheaval caused in their countries 
during wars. Some of those immigrants are there legally, but not as 
legal immigrants. That is, there is a separate category of our 
immigration law which says if you're, in effect, fleeing political 
disruption in your own country, you can stay in our country but you 
don't become a legal immigrant with the right to apply for citizenship 
after 5 years. But many of them have been there quite a long while. Some 
of them are not legal under that status but they've been there quite a 
long while, and they did come because of the political upheaval.
    There are two real problems with just shipping all of them up and 
sending them home, aside from the practical problems of whether it can 
be done or not. One is that a lot of them have been in the United States 
so long that they have families there, they have children in school, 
they have lives that are intertwined with their communities. And it 
would be significantly disruptive and unfair to the families and the 
children.
    The other is that a lot of--such a dislocation would rob a lot of 
these countries of cash remittances that a lot of these folks are 
sending back home to their families which take the place of a lot of 
foreign aid or domestic economic activity in keeping the country going. 
And also, that level of influx would destabilize them.
    So I think it's fair to say that everyone who studied this 
understands that the Central American countries--a number of them are in 
a very special category when it comes to dealing with the immigration 
laws.
    The immigration law that we passed was designed to help us stop 
illegal immigration at the border, in the workplace, and in the court 
system. And it will achieve that. But we have to implement it in a way 
that is humane and recognizes the special problems created here.
    So what I have said is that, number one, for the immigrants that are 
there legally, but not as legal immigrants--that is, they're in the 
category of people fleeing political problems at home--the law says that 
I can only exempt 4,000 people from being sent back to their countries. 
I will not trigger that law until September, the end of September, 
during which time I will work with Congress to try to figure out how to 
implement it.
    As to people who are generally not in America legally, there will be 
no mass deportations and no targeting of any citizens from any country. 
They will have to be dealt with on a case-by-case basis.
    And again, I will say, I'm not so sure, as whoever your anonymous 
source was, that the Congress will be unwilling to recognize the fact 
that these Central American countries are in a rather special category. 
After all, the United States Government was heavily involved with a lot 
of these countries during the time of all this upheaval. And just as we 
were quite generous--and we should have been--in welcoming Vietnamese 
people to our shores after the termination of our involvement in 
Vietnam, where our country did not prevail, in these nations where 
democracy has prevailed and we want to work with them to succeed, it 
seems to me we ought to be sensitive to the disruptions that were caused 
during those tough years that we were involved in as a nation. So I'm 
not so sure we can't get some treatments.
    But the law itself, I want to say, as I said in Mexico, it's a good 
thing that we try to stop illegal immigration because if we don't, we 
won't be able to keep the American people in support of legal 
immigration. So we have to stop it as much as we can. But we have to 
understand, these Central American countries are in a different category 
because of what they went through in the 1980s.
    President Figueres. I feel that we have advanced a lot on this 
subject, which is certainly important to the Central American nations 
for many of the reasons that President Clinton has just mentioned. But 
on this issue of immigration, your question was, has there been an 
overreaction in Central America. I don't believe that there has been an 
over

[[Page 680]]

reaction, and I believe that we have achieved substantial progress.
    If I may, on that, I would like to call perhaps on President Armando 
Calderon Sol, because he is really the one that, in terms of Central 
America, with President Arnoldo Aleman, led the conversation.
    President Calderon.  I would just like to add that, for us, this new 
relationship that we have begun between Central America and the United 
States, at the time of President Clinton's visit is profoundly 
significant. It represents a recognition by the United States, a 
recognition of the contribution that our people make to their economy, a 
recognition of the human drama that our people are experiencing in the 
United States because of what happens here, because this was the theater 
of operations of the cold war, here in Central America, to hear this 
from the President of the United States and to hear the profoundly 
humane position that he adopts when he looks at the people which have 
had so much pain, for us is very encouraging. And he has stated very 
clearly that there will not be mass deportations, that they will seek to 
work more flexibly with the new immigration law, that there is time from 
now until September for a joint initiative with the Congress and to 
awaken more awareness within the Congress concerning this issue which is 
so important for Central America.
    Today is a very important day, a day of great hope for all Central 
Americans who, because of some of the tragic conditions of violence, had 
to leave to seek new shores, to find refuge in the United States.
    President Figueres. One last question.

Central American-U.S. Trade

    Q. Thank you, Mr. President. The question first for President 
Figueres, don't you think there's very little scope in having the 
support of the U.S. Government for a draft that would provide to expand 
the benefits of the Caribbean Basin Initiative when the countries of the 
region would like to have something more specific than that before the 
year 2005?
    And President Clinton, don't you think that mere support of good 
will for a draft is actually a very small guarantee for the Central 
American countries when there is a Congress which is actually against 
anything that has to do with free trade or unions or even the Democrats, 
themselves?
    President Figueres. With respect to trade, I feel that we have made 
major progress. These countries have benefitted from the Caribbean Basin 
Initiative for a number of years now. And this program is the basis on 
which we have been able to expand our exports from the entire region 
into traditional markets and also into new markets.
    The program that the executive branch of the United States is 
submitting to the Congress differs from the situation of the past. It 
contains funds to be able to counteract the loss of tariff income, which 
would mean expanding the list of products and the exemptions for many of 
the products coming from this region.
    Moreover, I think it is vitally important that we have agreed here 
to ask our ministers, the ministers who are involved in foreign trade, 
to task them with finding new ways, new creative ways to continue 
working together as a region with an eye to the year 2005, the date for 
which our continent plans to integrate. So the idea would be that we 
could advance even more in the field of trade before that date comes.
    With respect to trade, Laura [Laura Martinez, Costa Rica, Television 
7], we need to stress investment. I think this meeting, this summit 
meeting, in many ways, is a stamp of approval for the profound reforms 
that have been led by the Presidents of the area in the different 
countries. Today, the economies are much more open and much more 
competitive. They are true democracies and, of course, this opens up our 
doors to greater flows of investment. And ultimately, this is the way 
for us to integrate better.
    President Clinton. I would like to try to respond to your question 
with two points. First of all, this is not a--from our point of view--a 
vague commitment. I think you should see this in three steps--the 
question of how we might expand our trade between the United States and 
Central American countries.
    Number one, I have presented a budget to the Congress which, if the 
Congress will go along, provides for the reduction of tariffs

[[Page 681]]

over the next 5 years on a lot of other goods which would increase trade 
with both Central America and the Caribbean. It is fully paid for in my 
budget. And therefore, I think we will have--we have some chance of 
passing it, perhaps a good chance. And I certainly intend to fight hard 
for it. So there's that step.

    Then the second step is that we have agreed to bring our trade and 
investment ministers together to identify what we do after that, what 
more can we do. Then the third step is adopting the free-trade area of 
the Americas by 2005.

    I know 2005 sounds like a long time away, especially if you're very 
young, but it's not so very long. And if you think about what will then 
be a trading area of over a billion people, it is a stunning achievement 
if we can pull it off. So I am not excluding the possibility that we can 
do more than expand the Caribbean Basin Initiative, nor am I taking for 
granted that it will be done, but that is the three-step process I see.

    Now, the larger point you made is that the Congress of the United 
States is opposed to free trade. That may not be true. There are strong 
opponents of expanded trade in the Congress, but there are also very 
strong supporters. Some people are just against trade because they think 
it gives the United States a bad deal. I think the evidence is squarely 
against them. The more we open our markets, the better our economy does. 
And we have wages going up for the first time in 20 years, and last 
year, more than half the new jobs, for the first time in many years, 
coming into our economy were above average wage. So trade is good for 
us, not bad.

    Secondly, we can get a lot of people in my party--you mentioned my 
party specifically--we can get a lot of people in my party to vote for a 
fast-track authority if our trading partners will give serious attention 
to the question of making sure that all people in our country get to 
participate in the benefits of expanded trade and wealth. That's why I 
have advocated that we set up a labor forum to go with the business 
forum that will meet as we work toward a free-trade area of the 
Americas. The more Americans believe that all ordinary working people in 
other countries will benefit from expanded trade, the more likely we are 
to find support for it in the Congress.

    Yes, ma'am.

    Q. Thank you, Mr. President. I have a question for you and one 
question for the Presidents of Central America. Regionally, Central 
America was looking for NAFTA parity, and then later they changed 
things, that they preferred to have a free trade agreement. Given the 
sentiments in Congress, what do you personally believe is the best 
venue, the most effective to get that free trade agreement? And also, 
when do you expect to have a fast-track authority with Congress?

    And also, for the Presidents of Central America--President Figueres 
or any of the other Presidents that you are going to seek an amnesty 
with regard to immigration. I don't know if you asked for that amnesty 
of President Clinton, and if so, what was his response?

    President Clinton. Let me answer your question quite succinctly. I 
think the best course is for me first to try to pass my budget which 
contains an expansion of the Caribbean Basin Initiative; and second, to 
try to pass fast track authority in the Congress this year, which I 
fully intend to do my best to do. We're going to work very hard on that. 
And at the same time, then, to consult with leaders of the Congress in 
both parties who favor this approach about what they believe the best 
way to proceed is, because we're all going to have to work together on 
this.

    While we're consulting with Congress, there will be this meeting of 
our ministers, all of our ministers, identifying what they think the 
next step should be to continue to expand trade. So I think that our 
road map is quite clear, and that is the one I intend to pursue.

    President Figueres. With respect to the question of immigration, it 
has already been covered by Armando Calderon Sol, but I would like to go 
back to your question with respect--that, first, Central America wanted 
parity an then later on began to look for other ways to acquire more 
investment and how do we think is the best. Don Alvaro Arzu discussed 
this issue extensively this morning

[[Page 682]]

in the forum, and I would like to invite him to answer your question.
    President Arzu. Thank you. What we have stressed and tried to 
demonstrate is that the region of Central America is prepared, is ready. 
It's no longer time for us to be reaching out our hands to ask for 
support, although we are grateful for the support we have received. But 
instead, we have a desire for a more longstanding, a more permanent 
relationship of partnership, and more than that, we want a free trade 
agreement. This is our aspiration.
    We need to follow certain parameters, which are requirements, with 
Congress for example; also with public opinion, the press--[inaudible]--
in communication. But what we mostly want to tell the American union is 
that we are ready. In Central America, we are ready to compete. We are 
ready to receive investment. We are ready to generate production. And we 
are ready to diversify the results and the profits that we attract among 
the large mass of impoverished people in our region in order to begin 
shrinking the very profound socioeconomic gap that we still have. So we 
want to go beyond that and I think we can do it.
    Thank you.
    President Figueres. Thank you. this concludes the press conference.

Note: The President's 144th news conference began at 1:20 p.m. at the 
National Theater. President Jose Figueres of Costa Rica spoke in Spanish 
and English, and his Spanish remarks were translated by an interpreter. 
President Armando Calderon of El Salvador and President Alvaro Arzu of 
Guatemala spoke in Spanish, and their remarks were translated by an 
interpreter. A tape was not available for verification of the content of 
this news conference.