WASHINGTON (Reuters) – US President Barack Obama held talks with his Peruvian counterpart Alan Garcia on Tuesday and praised his stewardship of the Andean country’s economy during the global economic crisis.
Garcia, a strong advocate of foreign investment and free-market policies, is considered one of Washington’s strongest allies in South America.
Calling Peru an “extraordinary economic success story,” Obama said the country’s economy, which the IMF projects could grow up to 7 percent this year, had remained resilient in the midst of a tough global recession.
Obama said his talks with Garcia at the White House had covered security issues, improving trade through their bilateral free trade agreement, the promotion of democracy and human rights in the region and nuclear non-proliferation.
In comments to reporters after their meeting, both leaders made only glancing mention of two hot-button topics — Peru’s rising cocaine production and US immigration policy.
