• Submitted by: admin
• Caribbean
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• international
• North America
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• United States
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• Politics and Government
• 03 / 15 / 2009

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Speaking after a meeting between the two men in Washington, Lula told reporters he had also called on President Obama to create a relationship of "trust not interference," with Latin America.

"What I said to President Obama, and I hope he will make it happen, is that there would be closer ties with Venezuela, closer ties with Cuba, closer ties with Bolivia," Lula said.

US relations with the three countries remain strained, as Washington grapples with how to deal with Latin America's resurgent left-wing and populist governments.

"I think in Latin America we need to construct a new relationship, a relationship of trust not interference," Lula told reporters.

US relations with the region will be on the agenda next month when Obama attends the Summit of the Americas on the Caribbean island of Trinidad.

(AFP)