on Thursday highlighted the strong cooperation ties that exist with Peru, in addition to the work being done against scourges such as drug trafficking and crime.
The diplomat indicated that the U.S. continues working with Peru to address collective threats such as transnational crime and drug trafficking —both elements exacerbated by the scourge of corruption.
Within this framework, the U.S. government official said that financing from his country, training and alliances, enabled Peru to make progress on these issues. Thus, work will continue in the coming years.
Peru and the United States also work bilaterally based on shared interests and values, as has happened with many U.S. administrations for years, he affirmed.
At the meeting, the dignitaries talked about the shared work on migration.
He added that, with his Peruvian counterpart, they had discussed the work necessary to create the conditions for safe, orderly, humane, and regulated migration —a matter on which Peru is setting a great example.
Mr. Blinken highlighted the fact that there are countries working on ways to better integrate migrants into their host communities —in addition to the fight against xenophobia.
Concerning those matters, the official said the United States will provide more than US$240 million in new humanitarian assistance to meet the needs of refugees across the hemisphere.
The chief of U.S. diplomacy noted that he had also spoken with President Castillo about the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, in addition to the economic situation emerged from the increase in (prices of) fertilizers and energy. Thus, efforts will be undertaken to adequately respond to these challenges.
In this sense, he said that headwinds are affecting marginalized and less favored communities, which is why the Declaration of Lima is important. It will be adopted by OAS Member States this Friday, he underlined.
Moreover, the U.S. official emphasized the alliance existing against illegal, unregulated, and unreported fishing, which is causing significant damage to Peru's economy and environment.
The State Secretary added that the United States is committed to also protecting Peruvian culture and heritage. He stressed that work has been carried out to return more than 2,000 cultural artifacts to Peru over the past 25 years.