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President Barack Obama offered a
spirit of cooperation to America's hemispheric neighbors at a
summit Saturday, listening to their complaints about past U.S.
interference in the region and even reaching out to Venezuela's
fiery leftist leader.

      While he worked to ease friction between the U.S. and leaders at
the Summit of the Americas, Obama cautioned them to resist a
temptation to blame all their problems on their behemoth neighbor
to the North.

      "I have a lot to learn and I very much look forward to
listening and figuring out how we can work together more
effectively," Obama said.

      Obama said he was ready to accept Cuban President Raul Castro's
proposal of talks on issues once off-limits for Cuba, including the
scores of political prisoners held by the communist government.
While praising America's initial effort to thaw relations with
Havana, the leaders pushed the U.S. to go further and lift the
47-year-old U.S. trade embargo against the communist nation.

      To Latin American nations reeling from a sudden plunge in
exports, Obama promised a new hemispheric growth fund, an
initiative to increase Caribbean security and a new regional
partnership to develop alternative energy sources and fight global
warming.

      As the first full day of meetings began on the two-island nation
of Trinidad and Tobago, Obama exchanged handshakes and pats on the
back with Venezuela's Hugo Chavez, who once likened President
George W. Bush to the devil. In front of photographers, Chavez gave
Obama a copy of "The Open Veins of Latin America: Five Centuries
of the Pillage of a Continent," a book by Eduardo Galeano, which
chronicles U.S. and European economic and political interference in
the region.

      When a reporter asked Obama what he thought of the book, the
president replied: "I thought it was one of Chavez' books. I was
going to give him one of mine." White House advisers said they
didn't know if Obama would read it or not.

      Later, during a group photo, Obama reached behind several
leaders at the summit to shake Chavez' hand for the third time.
Obama summoned a translator and the two smiled and spoke briefly.

      Those exchanges followed a brief grip and grin for cameras on
Friday night when Obama greeted Chavez in Spanish.

      "I think it was a good moment," Chavez said about their
initial encounter. "I think President Obama is an intelligent man,
compared to the previous U.S. president."

      The White House said Chavez was civil in his criticism of the
U.S. during a summit meeting, but that there was no discussion of
reinstating ambassadors who were kicked out of each other's
countries last year.

      Despite Obama's pledge of a new era of mutual respect toward
Latin America, Bolivia's President Evo Morales, another leftist
leader in South America, said Washington continues to conspire
against him. Morales told reporters that in the nearly 100 days
since Obama took office, he has seen no change in U.S. hostility to
his nation. Morales expelled the U.S. ambassador and drug agents
last year, accusing them of conspiring with the opposition to
incite violence.

      In an opening speech to the 34-nation gathering on Friday, the
president promised a new agenda for the Americas, as well as a new
style.

      "We have at times been disengaged, and at times we sought to
dictate our terms," Obama said to loud applause. "But I pledge to
you that we seek an equal partnership. There is no senior partner
and junior partner in our relations."

      He also extended a hand to a leader Ronald Reagan spent years
trying to drive from power: Nicaragua's Daniel Ortega. The
Sandinista president stepped up and introduced himself, U.S.
officials reported. Yet soon after, Ortega, who was ousted in 1990
elections that ended Nicaragua's civil war but who was returned to
power by voters in 2006, delivered a blistering 50-minute speech
that denounced capitalism and U.S. imperialism as the root of much
hemispheric mischief. The address even recalled the 1961 Bay of
Pigs invasion of Cuba, though Ortega said the new U.S. president
could not be held to account for that.

      "I'm grateful that President Ortega did not blame me for things
that happened when I was three months old," Obama said, to
laughter and applause from the other leaders.


      But perhaps the biggest applause line was his call for a fresh
start in relations between Washington and Havana.


      Earlier this week, Obama ordered an easing of travel and
remittance restrictions for Americans with relatives in Cuba.
Within hours, Castro - who took over from his ailing brother Fidel
a year ago - responded with an offer of talks on "everything"
that divides the two countries.

Gallery

Politics and Government News

President Barack Obama offered a
spirit of cooperation to America's hemispheric neighbors at a
summit Saturday, listening to their complaints about past U.S.
interference in the region and even reaching out to Venezuela's
fiery leftist leader.


Barack Obama listens to South American leaders

Obama offers cooperation during South American summit

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