On Monday President Barack Obama met with Chile President Michelle Bachelet in the White House's Oval Office. They reportedly discussed the relationship between their two countries, free trade, energy and education.

According to a statement by the White House, the two presidents' meeting highlighted the U.S.' "partnership" with Chile, "which is rooted in a strong commitment to democratic traditions; economic integration and open markets; increasing cooperation in areas such as energy, science and technology, and education; and addressing global challenges in security and development."

"Chile has been a model of democracy in Latin America," Obama said at the beginning of the meeting, according to EFE. "It's been able to consistently transition from center-left governments to center-right governments, but always respectful of democratic traditions. Obviously, those traditions were hard-won, and President Bachelet knows as well as anybody how difficult it was to bring about democracy."

Obama and Bachelet, who Associated Press says Obama described as his "second favorite Michelle," discussed the 2004 U.S.-Chile Free Trade Agreement. The statement reports that since the FTA began, two-way bilateral trade has reached $28 billion.

"We are commemorating 10 years of the free trade agreement from the U.S. and Chile, and the U.S. is our, I would say, our most important foreign investor and we want to continue that path," Bachelet said at a press conference at the White House.

U.S. exports to Chile have increased 545 percent, and U.S. imports from Chile have increased by 180 percent since 2003, the statement says.

"Based on our shared commitment to open markets and high standards for trade and investment, the United States and Chile are now working together, along with ten other countries, to complete the Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations," the statement says. "The TPP will build on our FTA and extend ambitious 21st century trade and investment rules that will open markets for U.S. and Chilean exporters."

In addition, Obama said that the two discussed clean energy ideas, including a $230 million, 141 megawatt solar power plant to be built in Chile's Atacama Desert region.

"The plant will help diversify Chile's energy sources and also supports President Obama's National Export Initiative by facilitating some $97 million in U.S. exports," the White House statement says.
---

Follow Scharon Harding on Twitter: @ScharHar.

Related