Otto Reich
Otto Juan Reich ( born October 16, 1945 in Havana ) is an American politician and diplomat. In the reign of U.S. President Ronald Reagan was the Cuban exiles Empire from 1986 to 1989 the United States ambassador in Venezuela. From January 2003 to June 2004, he held the position of Special Envoy of the U.S. Department of State for the Western Hemisphere at the 43rd U.S. President George W. Bush.
Reich was appointed in January 2002 to the Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere ( Assistant Secretary of State for the Western Hemisphere ). However, his nomination was told such a high level of criticism that his appointment was never confirmed by the U.S. Senate. President Bush appointed him then to the "Special Envoy to the Western Hemisphere for the Secretary of State " - a post which requires no confirmation of Congress. Because of his fanatical anti-Castro ideology and its questionable activities in support of the Reagan administration in Central America policy Empire is very controversial person.
Biography
Early years
Empire is the son of a Cuban Catholic mother and a Jewish Austrian father. Walter Reich, whose parents perished in the Holocaust, fled to Cuba in 1938 and settled in Havana, where he married and a furniture store operation. When Otto Reich was 14 years old, was the Cuban revolution led by Fidel Castro, after which the family one and a half years later emigrated to the United States.
In 1966, Reich at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill BA in " International Studies ". From 1967 to 1969 he served in the U.S. Army where he was stationed in the Panama Canal Zone.
After Empire in 1973 a M. A. received in Latin American Studies at Georgetown University, he worked as an assistant for the U.S. House of Representatives, as an international representative of the trade department of the State of Florida, as the coordinator of Community Development of the City of Miami and later as the Washington director of the Council of the Americas.
Between 1981 and 1983 the Reich as an assistant administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development ( USAID) was responsible for U.S. development assistance to Latin America and the Caribbean. From 1991 to 1992, President George Bush appointed Reich Deputy U.S. Representative to the Geneva UN Human Rights Commission.
Office of Public Diplomacy
Between 1983 and 1986 led kingdom, the Office of Public Diplomacy for Latin America and the Caribbean (OPD ). Theoretically, it should be subject to the U.S. State Department, but later investigations of the U.S. Congress revealed that it immediately Lieutenant Colonel Oliver North of Reagan 's National Security Council of the United States in the White House was under. In collaboration with the CIA CIA propaganda expert information were disseminated as "white propaganda " to influence public opinion and the U.S. Congress to fund the contra activities against the Sandinista government in Nicaragua. Journalists was hidden leaked intelligence material that a Nicaraguan threat pretend and supported by the Reagan administration Cons should make it appear as "freedom fighters." The OPD was declared due to the 1987 investigation by the U.S. Court of Auditors for the prohibited covert propaganda activities illegal. In contrast to North empire was never accused of violating the ban by the U.S. Congress on aid to the Contras.
Between 1986 and 1989, Empire U.S. ambassador to Venezuela. His appointment was opposed by both Democrats in Washington, as well as by leading Venezuelan politicians, but the elements were passed over, as Venezuela sought access to the U.S. oil market. Just six weeks after his arrival in Caracas to kingdom to the Cuban exile Orlando Bosch, after he had been acquitted in Venezuela on charges of involvement in the bombing of a Cuban airliner, have helped to emigrate to the United States, although Bosch had received a visa.
Reich received the Superior Honor Award from the U.S. Department of State, the Meritorious Service Award and the highest honor of the Republic of Venezuela, the Liberator Order.
In the time of the Clinton administration Empire from 1989 to 2001 as a consultant and lobbyist for companies such as Bell Atlantic, McDonnell Douglas Aircraft Co., AT & T, Bacardi, British American Tobacco and Lockheed Martin operates the F- 16 fighter aircraft to Chile sought to sell. As a lobbyist, he has significantly promoted the inspired by the Bacardi family Helms- Burton Act. The Helms- Burton Act, temporarily mocked as " Bacardi - law," is a 1996 tightening of the U.S. trade embargo brought in by Senator Jesse Helms against Cuba U.S. law that ships international shipping lines calling at Cuba, for a long time the break- prohibits U.S. ports and US- Americans to travel to Cuba only via third countries (Canada, Mexico, Europe, etc.) allows.
Between 1998 and 2001 Reich co-host at " Choque de Opiniones " the Spanish-language channel CNN en Español, a Spanish version of CNN's " Crossfire ". He appears regularly in U.S. and Latin American media.
Venezuelan coup in 2002
Empire is considered to be directly involved as in the failed coup attempt against Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez. After the coup failed, it became public knowledge that Reich had met regularly with the conspirators, including Pedro Carmona in the White House, which was two days installed as when Chávez 's successor by the coup. It was also announced that next realm, were an official of the Bush administration, Elliott Abrams not only generally the coup plans known, but that he had monitored the operation planning and poor they discussed in detail up to the timing and the chances of success, which he described as excellent considered and she had sanctioned. On the day of installation of Carmona gathered empire ambassadors from Latin America and the Caribbean in his office and informed them that the replacement of Chávez no rupture of democratic rule is because of receded and " responsible for its own destiny " was.
The involvement of Empire is considered possible because of empire background as a U.S. representative in Latin America. Officials and anonymous sources confirmed meeting with some of the planners of the coup before 11 April 2002 but argued strongly from having supported the coup itself, for allegedly insisted on constitutional means. Others think that it conceals only the involvement of the U.S. government and there were signs that the USA initiated the coup prevail. Because of the allegations demanded U.S. Senator Chris Dodd an overview of the U.S. activities before and during the coup attempt. The OIG report found no fault on the part of the U.S. authorities, either in the U.S. State Department nor the U.S. Embassy.
A report in the New York Times, warned empire the U.S. Congress warned that more was at stake in Venezuela, as the success or defeat of Hugo Chavez. He also accused Chavez of interfering in the historically independent state oil company PDVSA to supply Colombian guerrillas as a retreat ( "safe haven " ) and to deliver Cuba with petroleum at lower rates. He also added that the U.S. government were available reports that "foreign paramilitary forces " - which he described as Cuban suspected - were involved in the bloody suppression of the anti -Chávez demonstrations in which ultimately fourteen people were killed.
The U.S., which the rebels recognized as the de facto government, condemned the coup after Chávez's return to the presidency.
Subsequent activities
Not long after his appointment as Special Envoy Empire was also appointed to the management of the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation in 2002, which is better known as the School of the Americas.
Ever since he left the White House in 2004, he stands at the head of his own international consulting firm Otto Reich Associates, LLC, based in Washington DC has.
In April 2013 Reich was accused of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro transition during the presidential campaign as a member of a conspiracy, the plan to assassinate him. For the same reason one of Reich and other outgoing threat to his life in the meantime elected President Maduro 's trip to New York to attend the UN General Assembly called off in September 2013.