What is the U.S. Military Doing in Paraguay?

[Judi Lynn]

What is the U.S. Military Doing in Paraguay?
Posted by: APR on Aug 07, 2005 - 12:31 PM
War & Terrorism
What is the U.S. Military Doing in Paraguay?

By Benjamin Dangl, Upside Down World
The U.S. military is conducting secretive operations in Paraguay and reportedly building a new base there. Human rights groups and military analysts in the region believe trouble is brewing. However, the U.S. embassy in Paraguay denies the base exists and describes the military activity as routine. According to an article in the Bolivian newspaper, El Deber, a U.S. base is being developed in Mariscal Estigarribia, Paraguay, 200 kilometers from the border with Bolivia. The base will permit the landing of large aircraft and is capable of housing up to 16,000 troops. A contingent of 500 U.S. troops arrived in Paraguay on July 1st with planes, weapons, equipment and ammunition. (1)
(snip)

On May 26, 2005 the Paraguayan senate approved the entrance of the troops, granting them total immunity, free from Paraguayan and International Criminal Court jurisdiction. The legislature is due to expire in December 2006, but is automatically extendable. Since December 2004, the U.S. has been pressuring Peru, Ecuador, Venezuela and Paraguay into signing a deal which would grant immunity to U.S. military. The Bush administration threatened to deny the countries up to $24.5 million in economic and military aid if they refused to sign the deal. Paraguay was the only country to accept the offer. (2)

A statement issued from the U.S. embassy in Paraguay explained that the military exercises in question involve humanitarian and medical assistance to poor communities as well as military training. The embassy maintained that the U.S. has “absolutely no intention of establishing a military base anywhere in Paraguay” and “has no intention to station soldiers for a lengthy period in Paraguay.” (3)

The Pentagon used this same rhetoric when describing its actions in Manta, Ecuador, now the home of an $80 million U.S. military base. First they said the facility was an archaic “dirt strip” which would be used for weather monitoring and would not permanently house U.S. personnel. Days later, the Pentagon stated that Manta was to serve as a major military base tasked with a variety of security-related missions. Human rights groups have linked the U.S. base in Manta to the 2002 coup against Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. (4)
(snip/...)

http://www.altpr.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=465

[randr]

1. Nearby oil

All over the world the neocons are preparing to strike.

[blm]

7. WATER wars will dwarf oil wars - RevMoon has been buying up Paraguay for

years now.

Read this from Moon's own words:

True Parents' Wedding Anniversary Address



Reverend Sun Myung Moon
May 3, 1996
East Garden
Translator Peter Kim



Father declares that from now on, those who rule and control the clean waters will become the eventual rulers of the world. Whoever is able to occupy and utilize the snow and ice in the North Pole and the clean water resources of the South Pole will eventually rule the world. Therefore, Father is studying the River Paraguay which runs centrally through South America. It is like the lifeline of the South American continent. Father wants to discover the key points along this river where we can establish our foundation. For the development of farms and ranches in South America, they all need this river which has abundant resources. This river will play a key role in the world because the South American continent will provide the unpolluted natural resources to the world eventually.



We must understand why Father has focused attention on Kodiak in North America, which is close to the North Pole, as well as a country such as Argentina in South America which is connected to the South Pole. Father also would like to see us establish a foundation in Siberia, formerly Soviet Union territory, because these are the key regions which will eventually save the world. It is not an easy task to pursue the oceanic venture. In fact it loses money. However, Father sees the future of the world heading in this direction. Therefore, even though we are losing money, Father continues to push this oceanic business. In South America alone Father has begun to establish 400 fishing regions. Four hundred boats are being built and there are plans to build small landing strips where small planes can land and take off without any restriction.



In the future, oceanic related tourism will comprise more than two-thirds of tourist vacation spots. When people go to the beaches and oceans of the world, so often they urinate in the water while they are swimming. This is one of the reasons that the water becomes polluted. If a statistical report comes out stating that a certain percentage of the ocean is polluted with human urine, then people will stay away from the beaches. In the future there will be privately owned beaches. If you wish to transport people to such beaches you need small privately owned planes. Ordinary people do not know this. People don't see the future yet, but in twenty or thirty years it will become apparent. The leisure industry will become the most attractive and money-making industry in the world.



What do you think will be more expensive in the future; the price of gasoline or drinking water? Think about it. Because of air and water pollution, in the future people may become sick. What will they look for? Pure, clean drinking water. When such a time comes, those who live in urban cities will eventually travel in search of clean air and water. When such a time comes there will be tough competition as to who possesses clean water and air within certain territories. People will fight over such territory where clean air and water can be preserved. That kind of territory will not allow any pollution-related businesses and factories at all. There will be a campaign to eat raw food. Once that time comes raw fish and vegetables will be the best food. That will be the only choice in order to avoid pollution. Also there will be a campaign to live without wearing clothes. Then it will become unnecessary to wear fancy clothing.



If we are presently able to live to the age of eighty years by wearing all manner of clothing throughout our lives, then without clothing we can surely live one hundred years, because our skin, tissues and cells will be able to breath more naturally. This isn't random talk on Father's part. Father has thought about this a great deal. Different people have various ways of predicting the future. However, Father's vision is what he explained here-just like the life of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden where they lived naturally with the animals.



The North Pole has an abundant supply of clean, unpolluted water. If we wanted to live there without clothing we would freeze to death. Therefore, we can conclude that the only other place where we can live naked, with abundant clean water resources, is South America. There is one particular swamp-like region on the border between Brazil and Paraguay which is approximately twice as large as Japan. In that region alone there are over 3,000 different species of fish. Father is interested in that region. If that region can be developed to create fish farms with all of these various species of fish, then the entire world will become interested. Everyone will want to come to visit such farms.



All along the River Paraguay, which is 3,200 kilometers in length, there are thousands of various sizes of lakes and ponds. If you observe it from the air, you can see that the entire area is covered by lakes. The weather is always good, making it possible to fish throughout the year. Also one could fish and live without clothing. Do you now understand why Father is focusing on South American projects? The River Paraguay itself has many species of fish. Therefore, if Father catches a cat fish he thinks to himself that this cat fish represents Brazil. Then if he catches another variety of fish he thinks that it represents Argentina. He puts national labels on the fish he catches.



Fishing from a boat or from the bank of a river is the best way to make plans and to think about the future of humanity. Traveling around the world as a fisherman is the best way to avoid misunderstanding or suspicions from different nations, because if such countries become suspicious of Father's coming and going it will cause difficulties. But as long as they know that Father is a fisherman, then there will be no misunderstanding or suspicion. The life of a fisherman and hunter is constantly moving around. Father only carries fishing poles with him and so he is not considered a threat.

>>>>

http://www.tparents.org/Moon-Talks/sunmyungmoon96/SM960503.htm

[Joebert]

8. Does Moon have a contractor?

Could this be another way of funneling money into a rich friend?

They build a base that will be able to protect the friend, and pay the friend big money to build it?

[blm]

49. Good question.

And could DynCorp or Bechtel be far behind?

[Doremus]

11. If we needed confirmation, this article proves Moon is stark, raving mad.

If we go nude we'll live longer because the cells can breathe?

And people worship this nutcase. He's certifiable.

[blm]

16. Worse, he's in control of most Republicans, their organizations and media

and has been for many years.

[Toots]

44. "why Father has focused attention on Kodiak in North America,

which is close to the North Pole." Their geography is a bit off I would venture. Kodiak Alaska is at the very southern edge of Alaska about two thousand miles from the North Pole. It is a small island that has no relevance to the North Pole at all nor to any fresh water source.

[Judi Lynn]

45. I wasn't properly prepared for this look into the mind of the great Moon!

"Down in South America the sun is often very hot, but if you go into the shade you can feel a difference like between summer and autumn. Here in North America we are not able to feel that degree of difference in temperature. Therefore, in South America people have a habit of taking a nap in the middle of the day. This can cause them to become lazy. We should launch some kind of revolution to prevent them from adopting that habit. Maybe we should build a sleeping kingdom down there. By this Father means to say, that instead of them sleeping in the night, let them sleep in the daytime and work in the night. If you want to do something in the night you require light. Therefore God has provided an abundance of electricity in South America. In Paraguay, for example, they have a surplus of electricity. This electricity could be utilized to light the entire country at night."
(snip)

[BrotherBuzz]

29. Nearby natural gas, too - CNG is becoming the growth industry

and Pacific LNG consortium intends to lead the way. I'm sure it was mentioned in Cheney's energy papers.

Although Paraguay neither consumes nor produces natural gas, the country could become a transit point for Bolivian natural gas in the near future. In March 2002, the Foreign Ministers of Paraguay and Bolivia signed a preliminary agreement regarding the construction of a pipeline to transport Bolivian natural gas to Brazil via Paraguay. Construction of the pipeline, known as the Integration Gas Pipeline (GASIN), is scheduled to begin in 2003, with completion anticipated in 2005. The pipeline will stretch 3,300 miles, through Bolivia, Argentina, and Paraguay en route to Brazil, which is currently experiencing a crippling energy shortage. Securing access to Bolivian natural gas could also allow Paraguay to incorporate natural gas into its national fuel mix, which currently relies heavily upon hydroelectric generation and imported petroleum.

[cornermouse]

2. Invasion probably.

It seems to be the only tactic that Bush has learned.

[shanti]

18. multi-pronged invasions

in different arenas. they have it all planned out - it's all in the PNAC. :-(

[Name removed]

37. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[ConcernedCanuk]

3. "granting them total immunity, free from Paraguayan and ICC jurisdiction"

.
.
.

I shortened it from

"granting them total immunity, free from Paraguayan and International Criminal Court jurisdiction"

now tell me

WHAT exctly would an above board, legal operation require that for??

mmmmm

'zactly . .

it AIN'T gonna be above board and legal

and in my opinion

Paraguay has just become another whoremeister for the US military to screw someone . .

but I's jus a dummm canuk

whadda I know? - - :shrug:

[Benhurst]

4. Undoubtedly up to no good, as usual. NT

[peacetalksforall]

5. A few things to keep in mind....

The close Bush friend, Rev. Moon, owns millions of acres of land in Paraguay and plans to take over the world from there.

Paraguay has a huge water aqua fir - some say the biggest in the world. Today, oil is #1. Tomorrow, water will be #1.

The right wing may have figured out what many others are realizing - the northern hemisphere is polluted. South America is rich in earth resources.

Since Moon expects to take over the world and Cheney, the PNAC, and the cabal have the same aspirations... they will either make that their base to escape to or make it a prison. It all means, they won't have to bother with Congress, the taxpayers, the UN, tribunals, and they can buy off Paraguayan officials. There only problem will be Paraguay's neighbors and it will always have to be a fly in - Paraguay - one of two land-locked countries in So. American.

[bemildred]

6. Bolivia would be my guess. nt

[cubschicago]

36. Venezula

Chavez.....

[bemildred]

40. Check a map.

Colombia is a lot closer to Venezuela, as is Central America.

Paraguay borders Brazil, Argentina, Bolivia, and Bolivia threatens to set a really bad example of an indigenous takeover of the government and natural resource base, and Bolivia is small and weak enough that we might have a shot at winning.

[nosmokes]

9. i was wondering why bushole was jumping chavez so.

besides the obvious answer of the oil, i mean. we hafta get a leash on these people.

[mom cat]

10. nominated...Thanks Judy Lynn

[BamaBecky]

12. Ah...Woo...Woo....we aren't suppose to ask stuff like that......

just kidding you...:hi:

all you have to do is figure out what RESOURCE the empire is trying to exploit..........there you have it!:shrug:

:yoiks:

Bama

[scarletwoman]

13. I despair for the future, I truly do.

If there is not some way found to end the grip of corruption, militarism, and the cancer of predatory corporatism, I don't see anything ahead for humankind but a hellish future of brutalized exploited masses, rampant environmental pollution, extinction of flora and fauna on a massive scale, endless wars with increasingly horrific weaponry, and a worldwide fascist state.

What power exists that can challenge the evil will of the elite who will take what they want and sow death and destruction where they please without a qualm?

What will kill the Beast?

sw

[niallmac]

14. Do not despair.

I am founding a new religion where in the next life we come back as holocaust immune cockroaches. Life will be good. If I only have one reincarnation to llve, let me live it as a cockraoch. ...I've tried the humankind thing already thank you very much.

[ugarte]

15. Yes, don't despair

Latin America's poor are more aware and politically conscious than ever before. Sending in a few Marines to quell an entire country is not going to work anymore.

[scarletwoman]

23. I agree: "Latin America's poor are... aware and politically conscious..."

Whether they can prevail against their own corrupt governments, the rape of their natural resources by multi-national corporations, AND the military might of the U.S. remains an open question, imho.

We are ALL faced with an enemy that cares not how high the body count rises, nor how much suffering is inflicted on humanity, as long as it prevails.

We are ALL expendable in the New World Order.

sw

[mopinko]

17. What will kill the Beast?- mutiny

when our citizen soldiers refuse to fight for corporations any more. no cogs, no machine. it's the only thing i can think of.

[scarletwoman]

20. May as well hope for a Deus ex Machina as for a mutiny.

Seriously. Until the day that General Smedley Butler's "War is a Racket" becomes required reading in every school in the country, there will ALWAYS be citizen soldiers willing to "fight for corporations" -- that's virutally all the U.S. military has ever DONE, with the qualified exception of WWII.

In order to have such a muntiny there would need to be a momentous shift of consciousness. How's that going to happen in our nascent theocratic-fascist state with its controlled corporate media and bread-and-circuses mass consumer culture?

Look at what happened with the massive cultural shift in the 60s -- I was there, we had the streets, we were all "give peace a chance" and "what if they gave a war and nobody came". The Vietnam war finally sputtered to a halt, but NOTHING CHANGED in regard to the essential militarism of our culture, the nationalist fantasy of "serving your country" never died.

There won't be a mutiny. There's just not enough awakened, enlightened people in this country to bring about the massive perceptual shift in the group mind that such a possibility would require.

sw

[mopinko]

22. just sayin

not predicting, just sayin. but there are many more every day saying hell no. didn't mean to imply that it had to be an armed insurrection. one citizen soldier at a time will do.

[scarletwoman]

24. Hey, it's cool. I WANT you to be correct, btw. I'll say no more.

[cliss]

48. Don't worry too much, Scarlet.

I have an insider's hunch that things may turn out OK, after all. While the situation is dire, we should have good reason to believe the "elite" may not succeed with all their evil plans.

First of all, the US comprises only 3.8% of the world's population. It's pretty hard to jerk around the other 96% all the time. We can't do it all. After all, we're pretty busy in the Middle East.

Now, you may argue that the "elite" isn't necessarily the US and you would be right. There are European corporations, Russian, Australian. It's more like the Northern hemisphere is stealing from the southern hemisphere.

BUT -- S. and Central America is waking up. They are starting to come together, and that's a big threat to them.

Sadly, the biggest threat we face is overpopulation. The 'elite' is scrambling to take the most important assets, before things spiral out of control. That's what we're seeing today. Water, oil, natural gas, they're all moving quickly to grab it NOW.

Once the world population gets stabilized (and it WILL, one way or another) then things will get better.

[Pystoff]

19. Oh I got this one!

Simple answer is a training base for anti-socialist death squads to take control of Bolivian,Ecuadorian, and Venezualian jungle thus making our outright support of them possible so major corporations (Exxon,Mobil you know Pug-neo-con backers)can take over the oil and gas reserves....eventually.

That was easy.

[wli]

21. brilliant, more death squads & anti-Chavez BS

Fascism on the march.

[HeeBGBz]

25. Is Paraguay near Venezuela?

Ok, so I'm not a geography buff. Just askin.

[NNN0LHI]

26. here

[HeeBGBz]

27. Ahh, thank you

Yes, I was too lazy to search for it myself.

[confludemocrat]

28. Probs in area are basically Indian rights issues guess whose side US on?

In Bolivia we will take care of the white dominated north where the oil and gas is--maybe help it secede? CIA is probably working on that right now.

[dansolo]

30. If they are there for "humanitarian and medical assistance"

Then why is there any need for total immunity?

[sintax]

31. It's too late

The party's over for the neocon death cult in S. America.

Life finds a way

nominated

[UTUSN]

32. Is HITLER (Shrub) Still Alive? n/t

[Stinky The Clown]

33. Here's an oldie but goodie .........

... from the Chicago Tribune, back in 1986:

http://www.posner.com/articles/mengele.htm

I know this has the whiff of tin foil to it, but these stories have persisted one damned long time. To the best of my knowledge, they've never been refuted.

If you wanna scare the shit out of yourself, pretend you're a historical novelist and come up with a plot line involving Kim Il Bush's grampa, papa, and hizownself. Add a dash of Mengeles. Season with some Nuremburg trial facts and bake for a few hours ......

[I_Make_Mistakes]

34. OK guys

One of the evening news programs did, like within the last few years, (actually it was probably 2000, 20 yr. CIA projection report) a report on WATER as a future problem. According to the CIA 2020 report, WATER is going to be the problem.

They reported about the Nile, not being tapped greatly with the current populations, but with pop. explosions in that area, the down stream countries, yes, rivers cross borders, water was going to be a problem.

They showed several large continents and their water supplies. It really was eye opening. You should actually investigate this before pooh poohing it.

My mom, just recently retired, was a controller at a Philly water authority. She was telling me about salt water penetrating the Delaware River (major water source for Philly) years ago. Laugh if you want, but how long can you live without water?

[Judi Lynn]

42. They also have a special point of interest unequaled anywhere else

in the entire world. I'm sorry to admit I have never heard of it until the last couple of years. It's been basically ignored by our own media, which, you'll see is odd, considering its importance:



Picture courtesy of Itaipú Binacional

The Itaipú hydroelectric power plant is the largest development of its kind in operation in the world. Built from 1975 to 1991, in a binational development on the Paraná River, Itaipú represents the efforts and accomplishments of two neighboring countries, Brazil and Paraguay. The power plant's 18 generating units add up to a total production capacity of 12,600 MW (megawatts) and a reliable output of 75 million MWh a year. Itaipú's energy production has broken several records over the recent years, after the last generating unit was commissioned in 1991. The generation of 77.212.396 MWh a year in 1995 will again be surpassed in 1996, and the new record will be around the 80 million MWh a year mark.

The magnitude of the project can also be demonstrated by the fact that in 1995 Itaipú alone responded for 25% of the energy supply in Brazil and 78% in Paraguay. The power plant is also a major tourism attraction in the Foz do Iguaçú area, having received around 9 million visitors from 162 countries. The Brazilian city of Foz do Iguaçu, also home of the famous Iguaçú Falls, is located at the Western tip of Paraná State, right by the border with Paraguay and Argentina.

General Outline of the Project
The Itaipú hydroelectric power plant, located 14 kilometers North of the International Bridge linking the cities of Foz do Iguaçú, Brazil, and Ciudad del Este, Paraguay, consists of a series of various types of dams a total distance of 7,744 meters with a crest elevation of 225 meters. The Powerhouse is located at the toe of the main Dam, most of it on the river bed and the rest on the Diversion Channel. The nominal power of the plant is 12,600 MW, divided between 18 generating units of 700 MW each, 15 of which are located in the main Powerhouse and the remaining three on the Diversion Channel. The Spillway is located on the right bank, and it has 14 segmented sluice-gates with a total discharge rate of 62,200 cubic meters per second (twice that of the highest flood- level on record). The Concrete Main Dam is of the hollow gravity type and is connected to the Spillway by a concrete buttress-type Wing Dam which continues thereon as a small Cardhfill dike. On the left bank a Rockfill Dam is linked to the Main Dam and at the other end to an Earthfill Dam. In order to build the main dam wall and the Powerhouse, the river was diverted through a Diversion Channel on the left bank.

The volumes of construction in Itaipú are also impressive. The volume of iron and steel utilized in the Dam structure would be enough to build 380 Eiffel Towers, and the volume of concrete used in Itaipú represents 15 times the volume utilized to build the Channel Tunnel between France and England. Itaipú is one of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World, according to a worldwide survey conducted by the American Society of civil Engineers (ASCE) and published in Dec. 1995 as a cover article of the North-American "Popular Mechanics". The article says that " To build , workers reenacted a labor of Hercules: they shifted the course of the seventh biggest river in the world (Paraná River, at the Brazil/Paraguay border) and removed more than 50 million tons of earth and rock." According to the magazine, "the true marvel of Itaipú, though, is its powerhouse ... a single building that puts out 12,600 megawatts -- enough to power most of California".
(snip)

http://ce.eng.usf.edu/pharos/wonders/Modern/itaipu.html

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As with the division of financing, half of the generators are owned by Brazil and the other half by Paraguay. However, Paraguay sells the majority of its power to Brazil (and therefore has not had difficulty in paying for the project). Even in this configuration, the plant supplies 25% of the power consumed by Brazil and 90% of that consumed by Paraguay. Furthermore, this electricity for Paraguay is sold very cheaply and so although it is poor, its citizens can afford abundant lighting. On the other hand, Itaipu was built during the corrupt Stroessner dictatorship and so a small number of families owning large construction businesses benefitted significantly at the expense of the general population.
(snip/...)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Itaipu

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

For anyone unfamiliar with the dictator mentioned above, here's a thumbnail sketch:

12 ALFREDO STROESSNER
President-for-Life of Paraguay
Alfredo Stroessner came to power in 1954, but European correspondents who visited Paraguay during his rule used the term the "poor man's Nazi regime" to describe the Paraguayan government. The parallels may have been more than a coincidence, for many Nazi war criminals, such as Joseph Mengele, had settled there with Stroessner's blessing.
From the Nazis the Paraguayan military leamed the art of genocide. The native Ache Indians were in the way of progress, progress represented by American and European corporations who planned to exploit the nation's forests, mines, and grazing lands. The Indians were hunted down, parents killed, and children sold into slavery. Survivors were herded into reservations headed by American fundamentalist missionaries , some of whom had participated in the hunts.
Between 1962 and 1975, Paraguay received $146 million in U.S. aid. Paraguayan officials seemingly wanted more, however, for in 1971, high ranking members of the regime were implicated in the Marseilles drug ring, with Paraguay their transfer point for shipments from France to the U.S. In the 1980s America finally condemned Paraguayan civil rights abuses and drug trafficking. Stroessner still looked as if he'd be dictator for life but in 1988 one of his closest generals, Andres Rodriguez, a known drug dealer, took over after a coup. Rodriguez promised to restore democracy, and President Bush called the 1989 elections "a democratic opening," but opponents declared them "a massive fraud." Rodriguez's Colorado party won 74% of the vote.
(snip/)

http://home.iprimus.com.au/korob/fdtcards/SouthAmerica.html

[blindpig]

46. That's one big damned sediment trap n/t

[loudsue]

38. Wow. That was pretty revealing.

Nazis....all mentors to the bush administration heavies. "No remorse."

:kick::kick::kick:

[IndianaGreen]

35. If Evo Morales wins the election in Bolivia

I suspect the US will stage a Katanga style operation in which the natural gas rich regions of Bolivia will "secede" from the central government.

Read about Frank Carlucci, Patrice Lumumba, and the war in the Congo when Katanga split away.

On edit: Let's see a show of hands of how may among you will support the troops when they are airlifted into Bolivia from Paraguay to topple a democratically elected Morales government. Will you support the troops when they fire on peasants and miners in order to keep the Bolivian elites in power?

I want to know how much Fascism has infiltrated our way of thinking.

[theHandpuppet]

39. Not only our military, but an FBI office planned for 2006

Very interesting article about what we're up to in Paraguay -- not that our homegrown media would report on this.

U.S. Military Presence Stirs Speculation

August 03, 2005

By: Alejandro Sciscioli

Inter Press Service News Agency

See: http://www.independent-media.tv/item.cfm?fmedia_id=11530&fcategory_desc=Under%20Reported

[Judi Lynn]

41. This is a good link to file away for future reference.

They found a way, miraculously, to get the attention of Paraguay's President and Vice President when former President Raúl Cubas's daughter was killed. The upshot of this new round of interaction benefited U.S. expansionist dreams for Paraguay. Imagine that!

But after the 2004 kidnapping and subsequent murder of Cecilia Cubas, the daughter of former president Raúl Cubas (1998-1999), and the botched investigation of the crime, Vice President Luis Castiglioni began to forge closer ties with the U.S. government.

According to diplomatic sources, that has not particularly pleased President Nicanor Duarte.

Castiglioni officially announced this week that in late 2006, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) will open an office in the U.S. Embassy in Asunción.

This was agreed in early July when Castiglioni visited the United States, where he was received by Vice President Dick Cheney and Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs Roger Noriega.
(snip)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The latest joint exercise was a humanitarian mission carried out in 2003 in the department of Concepción, where landless campesinos have been mobilising in favour of agrarian reform.

At the start of the Duarte administration, in August 2003, a request by Washington for immunity from prosecution for U.S. troops was denied.

In December, the United States cancelled 330 million dollars in economic aid to some 10 countries, including Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela, because they refused to sign bilateral agreements that would ensure U.S. troops and other citizens immunity from prosecution by the International Criminal Court.
(snip/)

This link is well worth examining. Thanks.

[theHandpuppet]

43. You're welcome. I think we're all so focused on the Middle East...

... that we're unaware (or underinformed) of a lot of nefarious plots the Bushreich is conducting in Central and South America. Rotten stuff, this. Their deadly tentacles seem to reach everywhere.

[dajoki]

47. terrorism...

paraguay is becoming a hotbed for terrorists http://www.coha.org/WRH_issues/wrh_21_20_paraguay.htm