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OAS Secretary General Urges Countries in the Region to Define the Role of the Inter-American Defense System

The Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS), José Miguel Insulza, urged countries in the region to define the role of the Inter-American defense system, during his address to the Tenth Conference of Ministers of Defense, which is taking place in Punta del Este, Uruguay.

"There is a pending debate in the region about what are the best institutions for the coordinating Defense bodies in our hemisphere," said the OAS Secretary General of the at the first session of the conference. "The recent resolution of the OAS General Assembly in Cochabamba, that agreed to begin a dialogue on the Inter-American defense system, tells us that the time for that debate has come," he added.

The Secretary General emphasized that at present "a system, as such, does not exist; the four institutions that would make up this Inter-American defense system have different origins and realities, and were created in different times, without being conceived of as part of any system," he said, referring to the Inter-American Defense Board (IADB), the Inter-American Defense College, the Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance of 1947, and the Meeting of Ministers of Defense.

"The issue is just beginning to be discussed in the OAS, where in the next few weeks a report of the IADB should be presented to the Permanent Council,” said the leader of the OAS, who urged countries to define their positions in order to agree on the role of each institution, the tasks it performs, and how best to follow up on the meetings of Ministers of Defense.

In that sense, the leader of the OAS said that "the definition of the role to be played by our armed forces to meet the traditional threats and new threats, is not an easy task," and he recalled the Declaration on Security in the Americas, of 2003, which identified among the traditional and newer threats terrorism, transnational organized crime, the global drug problem, arms trafficking, money laundering, natural disasters, epidemics, human trafficking, cyber terrorism, and the possibility of damage caused by a maritime accident that spills radioactive or toxic waste.

Insulza also recalled that in recent years the armies of the region contributed substantially to important achievements such as the eradication of antipersonnel mines in Central America, and the work performed by the Peace Mission of the United Nations in Haiti.

At the same time, Secretary General Insulza praised the role of the Conference of Ministers of Defense, which "is the main coordinating body of the objectives and policies of defense of the democracies of the Americas, product and part of the process of democratic renewal our region has experienced for more than two decades."

The leader of the OAS recalled that it was not until the First Conference of Ministers of Defense, in Williamsburg (United States), in 1995, "when it was established at the hemispheric level the fundamental concept that, in a democracy, the armed forces depend upon and owe obedience to the democratically elected civil power."

"This is the precept we have been strengthening, each in their own way and according to their own reality, in our countries. That’s why these meetings of Ministers of Defense are increasingly a sign of our times," he added. As an example, Secretary General Insulza said that "if in Williamsburg - 17 years ago - we were glad of the newly attained peace in Central America, in Punta del Este, nine conferences later, we express our appreciation for the dialogue with the FARC that is about to begin in Colombia."

"This is the commandment we have been strengthening, each country in its own way and according to its own reality in our countries. So, these meetings of Defense Ministers are increasingly a sign of the times," he added. For example, the Secretary General Insulza said that "if in Williamsburg 17 years ago -we were glad of the newly attained peace in Central America, in Punta del Este, nine conferences later, we express our appreciation for the dialogue with the FARC that is about to begin in Colombia."

In his address the OAS leader defended the Treaty of Tlatelolco, which declares Latin America and the Caribbean as a nuclear arms free zone, and recalled that the OAS General Assembly ratified in June in Cochabamba “the need for a dialogue with respect to the question of sovereignty over the Malvinas Islands.”

For more information, please visit the OAS Website at www.oas.org.

Reference: E-361/12