Summit of the Americas: A Time to Recalibrate

The hype leading up to the Seventh Summit of the Americas, the international gathering bringing together the leaders of the entire hemisphere in Panama this week, is all about the long-awaited photo opportunity of U.S. President Barack Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro shaking hands. Pundits speculate whether the two presidents will have a bilateral meeting and if there will be some “grand announcement” on the opening date of embassies in Washington and Havana.

The thawing in U.S.-Cuba relations is important and even has a tint of romanticism after a half-century of animosity. But the summit needs to be about much more. There are critical issues affecting the region and it would truly be a missed opportunity if the leaders did not address at least some of them.

The name given to the summit this year, “Prosperity with Equity: The Challenge of Cooperation in the Americas,” says it all. In 2011, for the first time ever, middle-class Latin Americans outnumbered those living in poverty. But after a decade of growth fueled by higher commodity prices that propelled more than 70 million people out of poverty, these gains are being threatened and could begin to reverse.....

Read the full article in U.S. News & World Report's online opinion section.