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Hillary Clinton Makes Stop In Haiti

PORT AU PRINCE (CBS4) - U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made a brief stop in Haiti over the weekend to discuss that country's electoral crisis.

On Sunday she met with President Rene Preval and each of the three candidates vying to replace him. Only two candidates can go on to the delayed run-off vote, now scheduled for March 20. The U.S. is backing an Organization of American States recommendation that the candidate from Preval's party, Jude Celestin, should be left out.

Susan Rice, the top U.S. official at the United Nations, said recently that "sustained support" from the U.S. required the OAS recommendations be implemented. Many Haitian officials, including leaders of Preval's Unity party and rival candidate Michel Martelly, interpreted that to mean the U.S. was threatening an embargo and cutting off aid.

Clinton flatly rebuffed that suggestion. "We're not talking about any of that," she said.

(©2011 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

 

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