President Arosemena talking; President Johnson and others listening; Secretary of State Dean Rusk and others listening.




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Background: President Otto Arosemena Gomez of Ecuador in an emotional, hand-waving speech to the Latin American summit conference Thursday (14 April) strongly criticised United States economic policy toward the nations of Latin America, and said he will not sign the major statement of the conference, the so-called "Declaration of American Presidents" because of what he called its "insufficiency". President Arosemena also warned that if more aid from Washington is not forthcoming, the South American continent will be torn asunder by revolutions.

In general, President Arosemena complained that the United States had done more for its defeated enemies in the last world war - Italy, West Germany and Japan - than it had for its neighbors and allies in the same hemisphere. He went so far as to say that the conference's "Declaration of American Presidents" could not represent the wishes of the peoples of Latin American unless it was amended to call for more United States aid and better prices for Latin-American products.

His criticism of the United States was challenged immediately by the Presidents of Costa Rica, Venezuela, Colombia, Mexico and by President Eduardo Frei of Chile, who made an eloquent appeal to President Arosemena to settle for "attainable reality" and not "clutch for the moon".

In his major address, President Johnson put forth a challenge to the youth of Latin America to work with their governments for progress and constructive change, and called the next ten years "the decade or urgency". He offered additional help to the Latin American national as long as they agreed to form a common Market and begin other steps to help themselves.

Most attending the conference praised Mr. Johnson for not coming to Punta del Este with sacksful of new money.

The Declaration of American Presidents called for several steps to advance the economic progress of the continent, including: the creation of a Common Market; laying the physical foundations for Latin American economic integration through multinational projects; working to increase substantially the trade earnings of Latin America; modernising the living conditions of rural populations, raising agricultural productivity in general, and increasing food production.