US President Bush, Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice and foreign ministers from 33 other Western Hemisphere nations will gather June 5 to 7 at the Convention Center in Fort Lauderdale to discuss problems in the region and talk about "promoting democracy, economic development and human rights". At the meeting the United States also is expected to propose a resolution that would create a committee to monitor the quality of democracy in the region. The idea is seen by some as an attack on Venezuela which is at logger-heads with the United States on a variety of issues.
The Bush administration on Friday turned down the Venezuelan government's arrest request for Luis Posada Carriles, the anti-communist militant charged in that country in connection with the bombing of a Cuban airliner in 1976. Washington's rejection could worsen an already sour relationship between the United States and Venezuela. Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez said recently he would consider severing diplomatic relations with the United States if Posada is not extradited. Posada was tried twice and acquitted in Venezuela for the bombing of a Cubana Airlines DC-8 that killed 73 people. Posada, who had been a Venezuelan security official, escaped while awaiting a prosecutorial appeal.
Recently declassified U.S. government documents show Posada was on the CIA payroll in the 1960s and is now seeking asylum in the United States. Fort Lauderdale officials agreed to grant a parade permit and designate a protest site during the international conference.
The three day OAS Conference in Fort Lauderdale will conclude with a cocktail party at the Convention Center hosted by the Greater Fort Lauderdale Sister Cities International, The Organization of American States and the US Department of State.
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