SANTIAGO, Chile, April 29 (UPI) -- The top U.S. diplomat Friday downplayed the leadership impasse at the Organization of American States where the U.S. candidate has not got the expected support.
"We are very fortunate that we have outstanding candidates who want to be secretary-general of OAS," Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice told CNN en Español in an interview.
Rice arrived in Chile Friday for talks on democracy and the OAS, which has been without a president since October because its 34 members have been unable to agree on a new leader.
The candidates include Chile's Interior Minister Jose Miguel Insulza and Mexico's Foreign Minister Luis Ernesto Derbez. Washington backs Derbez, but Rice told CNN: "We have also said that Minister Insulza is someone with whom we've worked and we would be very pleased if he is the secretary-general of the OAS."
In her first meeting with Chilean President Ricardo Lagos, Rice hinted a consensus candidate may be the key to breaking the deadlock. Lagos, who backs Insulza, reportedly agreed a concession may be necessary.
