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LATIN AMERICA |
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Leftist Latin America Bloc To Begin Using
Its Own Currency
By
Andrea Rodriguez (AP)
HAVANA - Members of a leftist bloc of nine
Latin American nations said Saturday they
plan to use a new currency dubbed the "sucre"
for trade among themselves starting in
January.
No sucres will be printed or coined, but the
virtual currency will be used to manage
debts between governments while reducing
reliance on the U.S. dollar and on
Washington in general.
Cuba already signed an agreement on Saturday
to pay for a shipment of Venezuelan rice in
sucres, according to Rogelio Sierra, the
island's deputy foreign minister. He
declined to say what the shipment was worth.
That agreement was made even as ever
cash-strapped Cuba has fallen behind on its
debt to nations and multinational
corporations amid the global recession.
The Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas
trade group is holding a two-day summit
starting Sunday in the Cuban capital.
The group was formed by Venezuela's
self-described socialist president, Hugo
Chavez, as an alternative to U.S.-backed
free-trade consortiums. Member nations are
Venezuela, Cuba, Nicaragua, Honduras,
Ecuador, Bolivia, Antigua and Barbuda, San
Vincent and the Grenadines, and Dominica.
Honduras remains part of the bloc despite a
June coup that toppled leftist President
Manuel Zelaya. Zelaya's deposed foreign
minister is attending the summit, but the
acting government in Honduras will almost
certainly not abide by any agreements made.
Chavez was greeted Friday as he arrived in
Cuba by President Raul Castro. Cuba and
Venezuela signed "agreements of cooperation"
on 285 bilateral projects in 2010 totaling
nearly US$3.2 billion, according to
Venezuelan Energy Minister Rafael Ramirez.
He provided no details on what those
agreements entail, however.
On Saturday, Raul Castro said the
cooperation between the countries will allow
them to "alleviate the negative impact of
the current world economic crisis."
Leftist presidents Daniel Ortega of
Nicaragua and Evo Morales of Bolivia are
expected to attend the summit. |
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