March 7, 1999
Web posted at: 3:51 p.m. EST (2051 GMT)

In this story: A region at a crossroads A lucrative market RELATED STORIES, SITES

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- President Bill Clinton leaves Monday for Central America to inspect the damage left behind by last year's Hurricane Mitch, bearing little for the region's struggling nations but good will.

Clinton has asked Congress for an unprecedented U.S. aid package for the region -- $956 million in emergency assistance, in addition to the $305 million already spent on hurricane relief -- but has not yet seen it approved.

But observers and administration officials say the gestures of concern and good will Clinton will make during his four-day visit will be valuable in their own right.

Clinton will visit Nicaragua, El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras -- the countries hardest hit by the storm, which left more than 9,000 dead.

It displaced tens of thousands of people, destroying schools, homes, roads, bridges and farms. Mudslides wiped out entire villages in the worst natural disaster to hit the region in more than two centuries.

Thursday, Clinton is to convene a summit with Central American presidents to make sure the post-Mitch crisis does not derail free-market economics and democratic systems.

Hurricane Mitch killed more than 9,000 people and left thousands more homeless

A region at a crossroads

U.S. officials say the effects of Hurricane Mitch will linger throughout the region for several years. The hurricane was a devastating blow to an area just beginning to recover from decades of civil war and poverty.

National Security Adviser Samuel Berger said Mitch has brought Central America to a crossroads.

"It can undo the region's progress, or ... the countries of the region can work together to protect and even strengthen that progress," Berger said.

Added Sen. Paul Coverdell (R-Georgia): "If you upset the economy that much, and destabilize the people this much, you can make these fragile democracies teeter."

The devastation already has proven to be a difficult test for fledgling democratic governments. And the aftershocks are unlikely to respect national borders.

"The problems of the region, if they are not solved, spill over into our borders and become our problem," said Bernard Aronson, former assistant secretary of State for inter- American affairs. "If we are smart, as well as decent, we will help this region recover and grow their economies, and stabilize their democracies."

A lucrative market

Administration officials also argue that enlightened self- interest justifies of emergency aid.

The region is a lucrative market. U.S. exports to Central America have more than tripled since 1990. Another concern is immigration: Since the hurricane, thousands of Central Americans, desperate for work, have tried to enter the United States illegally.

"Getting these countries back on their feet again economically diminishes the sense of necessity that people have that they have to leave," Sen. Christopher Dodd (D- Connecticut) said.

Hillary Rodham Clinton will not accompany the president on the tour because of a recurring back injury, her spokeswoman said Sunday. The first lady aggravated a previously injured back muscle while on a skiing vacation in Utah with her husband and their daughter, Chelsea, said spokeswoman Marsha Berry.

White House Correspondent Chris Black contributed to this report.

Note: Pages will open in a new browser window

External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.