Zelaya and Aides Hint at U.S. Involvement in His Ouster

Zelaya " I Want My Mommy "

Zelaya and Aides Hint at U.S. Involvement in His Ouster


By the A.M. Costa Rica staff


Exiled Honduran president José Manuel Zelaya has suggested that the United States was involved in the coup that spirited him out of the country to Costa Rica June 28.

Zelaya, visiting in Brazil, said that the plane that carried him stopped at the Soto Cano Air Base before flying to San José. There is a contingent of U.S. military at the air base. Zelaya's allegation was repeated by members of his former government in interviews later in the week.

Philip J. Crowley, spokesman for the U.S. State Department, denied the allegation in his daily press briefing. U.S. military personnel were not involved in and had no knowledge of President Zelaya's flight to Costa Rica on June 28, he said.

"Soto Cano Air Base belongs to Honduras," he said. "It was run by and operated by the Honduran air force, and they make decisions about its use. Military personnel were not involved in the flight that carried President Zelaya to Costa Rica on June 28th. Task Force Bravo members had no knowledge of or any part in the decisions made for the plane to land, refuel, or take off."

"In light of the June 28th coup, the 600 American soldiers, sailors, and airmen based at Soto Cano as part of JTF Bravo have ceased conducting joint operations and exercises with the Honduran military," he said.

Zelaya said that he did not think high U.S. officials conspired to create the coup but he mentioned the Central Intelligence Agency.

A delegation from the interim Honduran government is expected to be in Washington today meeting with U.S. officials and the Organization of American States.

The Barack Obama administration has deplored the Honduran coup, but Zelaya is pushing for other countries, including the United States, to intervene on his behalf. The United States has cut off funds.

He also has made other allegations of assassination attempts that were not raised until he had been in exile for weeks.

The Zelaya situation has been followed closely in Costa Rica because President Óscar Arias Sánchez volunteered to arbitrate the dispute between the ousted president and Roberto Michelette, the interim leader. The negotiations hit a dead end because Michelette refuses to allow Zelaya to return to the country.

Since his ouster, Zelaya has been making the rounds trying to gain support in other countries. His major supporter is Hugo Chávez, the president of Venezuela. Chávez has threatened to invade Honduras to reinstall Zelaya.