[DR1] Bachelet to visit

[NewsWhore]

Chilean President Michelle Bachelet is to visit the Dominican Republic on June 11th, after meeting with US President George W. Bush in Washington on June 8th. She will be stopping over in Jamaica on the 9th and visiting Haiti on the 10th, according to a report in Listin Diario. The visits are connected with Chile's plan to refrain from voting in favor of Venezuela as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, after warnings from the United States indicating that a Chilean vote for Venezuela would result in "damaging relations with Washington and carry very high costs for Santiago" as reported by the Chilean media. Last Saturday, Bachelet said she would not yield to international pressure and that Chile would maintain its independence in terms of foreign affairs. Chile's alternative candidate for non-permanent member of the Security Council would not be Guatemala because of the overtly open support it receives from Washington. That is why the media has given importance to the last-minute inclusion of the three stops on Bachelet's trip back home: Jamaica, Haiti, and the DR. The DR is known for effective juggling of its relations with the US, Cuba, Venezuela, and Central America.

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