BRUSSELS – The U.S. deputy assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere Affairs noted here Wednesday the importance of free trade treaties to “fight against poverty” and emphasized the progress Latin America has made in its efforts to “open up to the world.”

Craig Kelly is in Brussels to discuss with European Union officials matters relating to Latin America at the first meeting with that agenda to be held since President Barack Obama took office.

In an interview with Efe, Kelly urged the ratification of the trade accords to give a push to the social inclusion of the poorest countries in the context of the negotiations that the EU is conducting with regions like Central America and individual countries such as Colombia and Peru.

“We can learn much from Europe in the sense of economic integration,” he said.

Kelly acknowledged that the poverty level continues to be “rather high” in Latin America, but he emphasized the progress achieved by several countries and expressed his confidence that “through the opening, we can do more to increase social inclusion.”

The diplomat also recalled Washington’s “Roads to Prosperity in the Americas” initiative, which aims “to expand the benefits of trade to sectors that, up to now, have remained a bit at the margin of international trade.”

Regarding the trade pact negotiated by the United States with Colombia, Kelly said that its paralysis in the U.S. Congress is due to the urgency of other challenges like dealing with the recession, but also, in part, to the situation of human rights in the Andean nation, which leads the world in killings of labor activists.

In any case, he alluded to the visit to Washington next week of Colombian President Alvaro Uribe as an example of the “excellent relationship” the two countries have.

Kelly also recalled that the United States has acknowledged its shared responsibility in the production and trafficking of drugs in countries like Colombia and Mexico.

“We are partners with Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean in this struggle against the scourge of drug trafficking and all the associated violence,” he said, emphasizing the importance of dealing with it in a “broad” sense.

“It’s not just about protecting the United States but about working with our friends in the region to achieve more security for all our citizens,” he noted.

Finally, Kelly emphasized a new initiative of Obama’s to foster coordination among projects related to renewable energy and environmental protection in Latin America, a measure in line with the statement issued at the last Summit of the Americas about the importance of harmonizing those efforts in the region. EFE