IAMI - Saying that Latin America ''often remains an afterthought in American foreign policy,'' George W. Bush pledged yesterday to build strong ties to the region, but pleased his South Florida audience by promising to retain a tough stance against Communist Cuba.
In a major foreign policy address, the Republican presidential contender said that if elected, he would push for a ''special relationship'' with Mexico.
He also pledged to promote business development with $100 million of no-collateral ''microloans,'' forgive $100 million in debt in exchange for conservation of tropical forests, and encourage American churches and businesses to adopt Latin counterparts and support US charitable ventures in Central and South America.
''We seek not just neighbors but strong partners. We seek not just progress but shared prosperity. With persistence and courage, we shaped the last century into an American century. With leadership and commitment, this can be the century of the Americas,'' Bush told an audience of 500 at Florida International University.
The Texas governor followed his speech with a meeting in Texas with Mexico's president-elect, Vicente Fox.
Fox, a former Coca-Cola executive, met Thursday with President Clinton and Bush's Democratic opponent, Vice President Al Gore. With all three, Fox pushed the concept of an ''open border'' along the 2,000-mile front between the neighboring nations.
Emerging from his hourlong session with Fox in Dallas, Bush said: ''Mexico is crucial to having good relations in Latin America. Relations between Mexico and the United States are really important, so I'm honored that the president-elect took time to visit with me in Texas.''
Bush presented Fox with a white Stetson cowboy hat, and the Mexican leader responded by giving Bush brown cowboy boots. ''The 21st century should be the century of Mexico, Latin America,'' Fox said, ''and certainly we can say that it's the century of NAFTA,'' referring to the 1993 North American Free Trade Agreements that liberalized trade among Mexico, the United States, and Canada.
Earlier in Florida, Bush said that should he win, he wants to meet in November with Fox, even though neither would have been sworn into office at that time.
While foreign affairs is considered a Bush weakness, the campaign welcomed the change of subject after what it considered a strong issue, a proposed $1.3 trillion tax cut, came under fire this week. The governor admitted Tuesday he had not done a good enough job selling the plan, prompting a fresh wave of criticism from Gore.
''Those who ignore Latin America do not fully understand America itself,'' Bush told the university audience. ''This country was right to be concerned about a country like Kosovo, for example, but there are more refugees in the conflict in Colombia. This country was right to be concerned about a country like Kuwait, but more of our oil comes from Venezuela. America is right to welcome trade with China, but we export nearly as much to Brazil.
''Our future cannot be separated from the future of Latin America,'' he said.
As he did in his speech accepting the Republican nomination in Philadelphia, Bush said the president and vice president had ''squandered'' opportunities in the region.
''The Clinton-Gore administration has no strategy. We have seen summits without substance, and reaction instead of action,'' the governor said. ''We were promised fast-track trade authority, as every American president has had it for 25 years, and yet this administration failed to get it. We were promised a Free Trade Area of the Americas, yet it never happened. Chile was promised partnership in NAFTA, and it was `delayed.' ... Should I become the president, I will look south, not as an afterthought, but as a fundamental commitment to my presidency.''
The Gore campaign rejected the criticism.
''There's not one breath of difference between what he's proposing and the priorities of this administration, either things we have approached Congress with or have suggested ourselves,'' said campaign spokeswoman Kym Spell. ''Time and time again, the Republican Congress threw up roadblocks or thwarted our efforts to get these things.''
When Bush delivered his first major foreign policy address last fall in California, the Gore campaign complained he focused on Cold War opponents such as Russia and China without mentioning Africa or Latin America.
Yesterday, Bush said that while he realized communist powers ''cannot be bullied into progress,'' he would not yield when it came to Cuba and its leader, Fidel Castro.
''I challenge the Castro regime to surprise the world and adopt the ways of democracy. Until it frees political prisoners and holds free elections and allows free speech, I will keep the current sanctions in place,'' he said, as about a third of the audience gave him a standing ovation.
Pledging support for Radio and TV Marti, which beam pro-democratic messages to Cuba, Bush said: ''My word to you, Mr. Castro: Let your people live in freedom.''
In addition to the governor's public appearances yesterday, the Bush campaign released its third TV ad of the campaign. Called ''No Changes, No Reductions,'' it shows Bush pledging during his acceptance speech to reform Medicare and Social Security without reducing benefits for ''the greatest generation'' of current recipients.
The ad will run in several of the 21 states where Bush's first two ads were shown.
