Ecuador not to renew pact on U.S. lease of Manta military base: FM

[Judi Lynn]

UPDATED: 13:37, February 16, 2007
Ecuador not to renew pact on U.S. lease of Manta military base: FM

The Ecuadorian government will not renew the United State's lease of a military base in Manta, Ecuadorian Foreign Minister Maria Fernanda Espinoza said here on Thursday.

Ecuador's sovereignty is not subject to any business, she told a press conference, noting the pact under which the lease was arranged is due to expire in 2009.

She also denied there were any ongoing negotiations with the United States on renewing the pact, apparently rebutting an earlier statement by U.S. top military figure James Stavridis that the two sides were negotiating the future of the U.S. military base in Manta.

The minister said ending the lease would not affect the anti-drug fights in the region.

The Ecuadorian and U.S. governments signed a pact in 1999, allowing the U.S. military to lease an air base in Manta for 10 years. Manta, located on the Pacific coast some 260 kms southwest of the Ecuadorian capital of Quito, is of great strategic importance.
(snip/...)

http://english.people.com.cn/200702/16/eng20070216_350647.html

[Doondoo]

1. "Ecuador's sovereignty is not subject to any business"

WHAT??!!! Hey lady, don't you know that MONEY TRUMPS PEACE??!!

[bemildred]

2. When is the "lease" on Gitmo up, anyway?

There is a lease that needs to be "not renewed".