Contadora collapse.Contadora Collapse THROUGHOUT THE national debate on U.S. policy toward Central America Central America, narrow, southernmost region (c.202,200 sq mi/523,698 sq km) of North America, linked to South America at Colombia. It separates the Caribbean from the Pacific. , the term "Contadora" has been a code word for liberal Democrats Liberal Democrats, British political party Liberal Democrats, British political party created in 1988 by the merger of the Liberal party with the Social Democratic party; the party was initially called the Social and Liberal Democratic party. and certain of their Republican counterparts. Indeed, they have turned Contadora into a magical incantation incantation, set formula, spoken or sung, for the purpose of working magic. An incantation is normally an invocation to beneficent supernatural spirits for aid, protection, or inspiration. It may also serve as a charm or spell to ward off the effects of evil spirits. : Abandon all counterproductive support of the Contras, engage in negotiations with the Sandinistas, and--abracadabra!--pluck peace from the hat of Central America. This perspective was long on idealism but short on reality. It failed to give the Reagan Administration Noun 1. Reagan administration - the executive under President Reagan executive - persons who administer the law credit for numerous attempts to engage the Sandinistas in negotiations, and it chose to overlook the Administration's fundamental support for the so-called Contadora process--the ongoing effort launched a few years ago by Mexico, Panama, Venezuela, and Columbia to find a diplomatic solution to the tense situation in Central America. The Administration's only serious difference with the Contadora countries has been its belief--born of experience--that the Sandinistas were unlikely to accept a negotiated settlement in the absence of military pressure from outside. On April 7, the Contadora process ground to a halt probably forever. The Contadora talks, then being held in Panama City Panama City, city (1990 pop. 34,378), seat of Bay co., NW Fla., on St. Andrews Bay; inc. 1909. A Gulf Coast resort with amusement parks and excellent fishing, it is also a port of entry. The city's industries produce paper, clothing, and chemicals. , did not collapse for lack of support from the Reagan Administration nor for lack of effort on the part of the Contadora countries. They self-destructed because of the intransigence in·tran·si·gent also in·tran·si·geant adj. Refusing to moderate a position, especially an extreme position; uncompromising. [French intransigeant, from Spanish intransigente : of Nicaragua, which refused to agree to a timetable for achieving a negotiated peace that 12 other Latin American foreign ministers had agreed to. "Nicaragua rejected everything that was presented to it," said Vice President Rudolf Castillo Claramount of El Salvador El Salvador (ĕl sälväthōr`), officially Republic of El Salvador, republic (2005 est. pop. 6,705,000), 8,260 sq mi (21,393 sq km), Central America. . "There is nothing left to talk about." U.S. Representative Bill Richardson (D., N.M.), who was sent to the talks by Tip O'Neill as an observer, returned with the report that two Cuban advisors to the Sandinista delegation had advised it to adopt an unyielding position of no compromise. Richardson's report, promptly denied by Nicaragua and Panama, nevertheless is likely to have a sobering effect on liberal doubters on Capitol Hill. |
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