Colombia: On 20 July US Secretary of State John Kerry issued a statement on behalf of US President Barack Obama and the US people, sending his “best wishes to the people of Colombia as you celebrate your independence on July 20th”.The statement notes that “as you mark this historic day, Colombians can celebrate significant progress in your quest for a just and lasting peace. Sustaining this progress has required courage, leadership, and determination. The stakes are too high to take anything for granted, but the perseverance of President [Juan Manuel] Santos, his negotiating team, and all the Colombian people has created the opportunity to unleash your country’s full potential as a vibrant democracy and economic engine”, this in reference to the ongoing peace negotiations that the Santos government has been advancing with Colombia’s largest guerrilla group, the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (Farc). In the press release, Kerry also states that President Santos’s February visit to the US highlighted “the strong ties between our nations”, adding that the “US will stand by Colombians as you continue on your journey to peace”. He goes on to note that on 4 February President Obama pledged US support through ‘Paz Colombia’, a new US government assistance programme, which will “provide a strategic framework for strengthening and expanding our already robust partnership. And in just two weeks, we will meet for our sixth High Level Partnership and Security Dialogues to further define the ways in which we will work together in the future”.
Haiti: On 21 July the US government’s Haiti Special Coordinator Kenneth Merten travelled to Haiti to further US government support for the staging of credible and fair elections in Haiti and to discuss the urgent need for elected representatives at all levels of government. According to a US State Department press release, Merten was due to meet with members of Haiti’s provisional electoral council (CEP) and “other stakeholders key to a return of constitutional order in Haiti”. The press release notes that the US “is committed to Haiti’s long-term democratic development and to retaining its vital humanitarian and development programs that help the Haitian people improve their lives”.
Mexico/Colombia: On 20 July US Senior Advisor to the Secretary of State, Ambassador David H. Thorne, arrived in Mexico City, where he was leading the US State Department’s ‘Innovation Roadshow’, which began in Colombia on 18 July. Made up of a diverse group that includes private companies, entrepreneurship non-profits, and financial investors, the delegation was due to meet with government officials, business leaders, venture capitalists, students, and start-ups to discuss the challenges to entrepreneurship and the importance of supporting innovation. In Mexico City, delegates were due to discuss entrepreneurship at the Escuela Bancaria y Comercial private business school and meet with innovators at business initiatives, StartUp Mexico, and MassChallenge Mexico, in addition to discussions with businesses and government officials. The roadshow wrapped up on 21-22 July in Guadalajara, Mexico, with a tour of the Eugenio Garza Lagüera entrepreneurship institute at the Instituto Technologico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey and meetings with decision-makers and entrepreneurs.
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