Speeches and Statements

Remarks by Ambassador James M. Derham during New Horizons 2007 Press Conference

Guatemala, January 17, 2007

Minister of Defense, Major General Ronaldo Leiva Rodríguez,
Chief of Staff, Brigadier General Mario Aguilar Bran,
General Ken Keen,
Colonel Linda Gould,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

Good afternoon. It is an honor to be here with you to announce an event that underlines the good cooperation that exists between the United Sates and Guatemala. Since 1995, every three or four years, the U.S. Department of Defense offers humanitarian assistance through an exercise known as New Horizons.

New Horizons’s goal is to bring assistance to those in need. In 2007, New Horizons will take place in San Marcos in northwestern Guatemala from March to May. The exercise will construct schools, clinics and wells and will also provide medical assistance. In order to do so, the U.S. Navy will transport heavy equipment to Guatemala between late January and mid-March.

This humanitarian exercise provides the United States the opportunity to deploy and train Military Reserve and National Guard troops. It also gives our military the opportunity to work alongside a friend and ally – including the Guatemalan Army and several Guatemalan government agencies. The schools, clinics and wells to be built during this exercise will serve the communities of San Marcos, which where severely damaged by tropical storm Stan in 2005.

I also want to emphasize the positive impact that New Horizons will bring to the mutual civil and military cooperation between our governments; together we can bring benefits and progress to the people of this region.

Many thanks.