Ecuador, New Ally to the South

www.washingtonpost.com By Marcela Sanchez Special to washingtonpost.com Friday, February 14, 2003; 11:27 AM

At a time when Washington's relations with other nations are fraught with tension, there is something endearing in hearing a foreign leader effusively proclaiming that he wants to become the best U.S. ally around.

Lucio Gutiérrez, the new Ecuadoran president, did just that during his trip to Washington this week. And, genuine or not, his gesture appeared to defuse any suspicions about his intentions.

This was no small feat, especially considering that Gutiérrez is the same former coup-plotting colonel who two years ago helped topple an elected president. Elected president himself in November in a tough campaign in which he ran as the populist candidate of the left, he has been described by some as part of a leftist force of ``evil'' taking over Latin America and is often likened to Venezuela's polarizing president, Hugo Chávez.

How can such a leader suddenly become Washington's best ally? Or more importantly for Gutiérrez, what future would such a president have when it is distrust and even hatred of Washington's dominance that propels outsiders like him into office?

In his defense, Gutiérrez says he is a victim of a ``satanized'' image. He argues rather that he is the embodiment of changing times in the region--not the radical changes and revolutions that years ago transplanted the Cold War to Latin American soil, or that have left modern-day Venezuela a broken nation.

Gutiérrez says there are ``fresh, gentle and positive'' winds of change pushing leaders to restore faith in the democratic system. It is not a matter of whether they come from the left or the right, but whether they will be able to address the growing needs of their people. Washington can choose to help, or turn its back. Right now it seems to be giving Gutiérrez the benefit of the doubt.

Washington generously opened its doors--and its wallet--to Gutiérrez, who has been in office barely a month. He is the first Ecuadoran head of state to pay an official visit to the White House in more than a decade. The International Monetary Fund formalized a $200 million loan agreement that his predecessor had been unable to obtain despite nearly a year of trying. And in the U.S. budget plan unveiled last week, President Bush requested $15 million in military assistance for Ecuador--15 times more than sought the year before.

Why such generosity? Possibly because in such a short period of time, Gutiérrez has said and done all the right things in the eyes of official Washington. He has sought and apparently taken to heart the recommendations of various officials here regarding the reforms necessary to maintain economic stability. He also has demonstrated a willingness to leave behind the tactic of kicking and screaming for more attention that created mutual frustration.

Instead, he has offered his full cooperation in the wars against terrorism, drugs and corruption. He has expressed interest in making his country an attractive place for foreign investment and trade with a proposal to make Ecuador, among other things, a reliable regional source of oil.

This is definitely the kind of ally Washington is looking for and should be interested in maintaining. Yet supporting Gutiérrez will not be easy. After all, he heads a country that has had five presidents in the last six years and forcibly removed the last two it democratically elected.

Gutiérrez came to power with the help of Ecuador's politically potent Indian voters. Yet numerous analysts contend that his first month in office has exposed the weakness of that coalition. The Pachakutik indigenous movement has had an especially tough time accepting the economic reforms required to obtain IMF support, but Gutiérrez asserted that his political marriage with the movement would continue ``until death do us part.''

That, obviously, remains to be seen. Just as it remains to be seen whether Gutiérrez's gambit to ally himself so closely with Washington is worth the doubts and suspicions he has already raised in his country.

The Bush administration can help demonstrate to Ecuadorans that its interests go beyond a security alliance. By backing Gutiérrez's social agenda, including his fight against corruption and his crusade against poverty, Washington could prove itself to be a true ally.

In play, after all, is not only the future of Ecuador but also the need to ensure that the winds of change sweeping across the region will remain gentle and positive.