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Posted on Tue, Mar. 13, 2007



Security for Bush visit astounds Mexican city

By Alfredo Corchado
DALLAS MORNING NEWS

MERIDA, Mexico - Today's meeting between President Bush and Mexican counterpart Felipe Calderon is billed as a reunion of good neighbors, but the security measures here -- in a city that many consider among the safest in Latin America -- left some locals shaking their heads in disbelief.

"I don't understand why there's so much security," mused Sterling Alberto, 35, a luggage handler at Merida's International Airport, surrounded by security detail, Black Hawk helicopters buzzing overhead and military convoys outside. "You'd think that a villain, not a friend, is coming to visit."

A security force of nearly 3,000 -- more than 400 from the United States -- lined the city's main thoroughfares, awaiting Bush's arrival late Monday.

In the nearby tiny town of Temozon, where Bush and Calderon were scheduled to meet today, local police were disarmed, some classes were suspended and a 9 p.m. curfew was in place until Bush departs Wednesday.

Merida is Bush's last stop on a five-country Latin America tour -- a trip highlighted more by the heavy security that has shadowed him than by any new agreements with Latin American leaders.

His stopover in Merida will be the longest and will involve plenty of face time with Calderon.

The two leaders are expected to discuss bilateral topics including border and port security, trade and economic development, and immigration reform -- even as the Calderon administration downplays the chance of significant breakthroughs on the latter.

"Don't expect any major announcement on immigration," warned a Mexican official, speaking on the condition of anonymity.

"This relationship is far more than one issue. There are a lot of topics on the agenda. Face-to-face contact is also vitally important, especially between neighbors who are trying to get to know each other better."

As a part of that effort, after their meeting in Temozon, the two will spend part of the afternoon touring ruins in Uxmal with their wives.

That aspect of the trip is precisely why many locals seemed perplexed by the fortress-like security.

"We have differences with Bush's war," said Tanny Martinez, 37, a shop owner. "But like good neighbors we respect our differences. This security is grossly exaggerated."

Bush returns to Washington midday Wednesday after stops in Brazil, Colombia, Uruguay and Guatemala to promote cooperation on alternative energy, free trade and agriculture.

Calderon is considered a key ally for Washington in the region. But he has said he does not intend to act as the Bush administration's ringleader to counteract Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.

"I am not interested in playing a role with Bush in that aspect," he told the Associated Press, adding, "The United States has a lot to do to regain respect in Latin America."

Houston Chronicle contributed to this story.






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