US, Mexico to fund water conservation projects
Date: 22-Aug-02
Country: USA
The projects were approved by the North American Development Bank, a financial institution established under the 1993 North American Free Trade Agreement to finance development along the U.S.-Mexico border, officials said.
"President Bush is committed to this hemisphere and to the economic future of Latin America," said John Taylor, Under Secretary for International Affairs at the Treasury Department. "This is a very good sign of U.S. cooperation with Latin American countries."
The conservation projects are aimed at easing a conflict between the U.S. and Mexico over water in the Rio Grande, which forms part of the border between the two neighbors.
U.S. farmers have accused Mexico of taking more than its share of water allowed under the terms of a 1944 treaty, which has hurt agriculture on both sides of the southern Rio Grande.
"This is a 'win-win' agreement which will not hurt Mexican farmers and Mexican cities but will increase flows to the Rio Grande," said Deputy Finance Minister Agustin Carstens of Mexico.
The Bush administration has been accused of not doing enough to help the struggling economies of Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay, but Taylor disagreed.
He said the Bush administration is "very concerned" about Latin American economies and said programs instituted during Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill's visit to the region last week are "a good sign of cooperation."