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US ambassador congratulates leftist for apparent win in Ecuador
AFP
QUITO
Petroleumworld.com 11 28 06The US ambassador in Ecuador on Monday congratulated leftist Rafael Correa on his apparent presidential election victory and said Washington hoped to work in a productive manner with his administration.
Ambassador Linda Jewell telephoned Correa on Monday afternoon "to congratulate him on his apparent victory," the US embassy said in a statement.
As part of the conversation, Jewell pointed to "the long and deep friendship that links the two countries."
Partial results based on 70 percent of polling stations showed that Correa, a friend of Venezuela's anti-US President Hugo Chavez, had 62 percent of the vote in Sunday's run-off election and a 24-point lead over conservative tycoon Alvaro Noboa.
"If the official results are consistent with this tendency, we hope to work in a productive manner with the Rafael Correa administration," she said, according to the statement issued in Spanish.
The two had a "very cordial" discussion on issues of importance for the bilateral relation and agreed to continue the dialogue in coming weeks, the statement said.
In his first statements after claiming victory, Correa said he would seek stronger ties with Venezuela, reiterated his opposition to a free trade deal with the United States and insisted he would not renew the lease for a US military air base on Ecuador's Pacific Coast.
But he has also stressed he hoped to have the "best possible" relations with the United States.
In Washington, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said on Monday bilateral relations would ultimately depend on whether Correa's policies are "consonant" with US goals for the region, which he described as the promotion of democracy, free trade and good governance.
"We are open to working with duly elected governments in the region that govern democratically, regardless of where they come from along the political spectrum," he said.
He went on to cite the example of Bolivia, where another Chavez ally, Evo Morales, was elected president in 2005 but softened his tone toward the United States once in office.
"The reality is that while we don't agree on everything, we have found ways to work together with Bolivia," McCormack said.
During his election campaign, Correa stirred unease in financial markets with calls to revise foreign oil companies' contracts in Ecuador, renegotiate foreign debt and expel the World Bank representative.
Asked to comment on possible nationalization of Ecuador's resources under Correa, McCormack said: "We would expect that all countries regardless of where they come from in their political orientation would respect valid international legal contracts".
He congratulated the Ecuadoran people for "a pretty transparent, free and fair electoral process".
AFP 28 0026 GMT 11 06
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