-DATE- 19880811 -YEAR- 1988 -DOCUMENT_TYPE- MEETING -AUTHOR- F.CASTRO -HEADLINE- CASTRO MEETS WITH PRESIDENT RODRIGO BORJA -PLACE- ECUADOR -SOURCE- HAVANA RADIO PROGRESO -REPORT_NBR- FBIS -REPORT_DATE- 19880811 -TEXT- Meets With Presidents FL1108125488 Havana Radio Progreso Network in Spanish 1100 GMT 11 Aug 88 [Text] President Fidel Castro had a friendly talk yesterday in Ecuador with that nation's national Congress and with the other chiefs of states attending the inauguration of President Rodrigo Borja. Inside and outside the Ecuadoran congressional vicinity, slogans of "viva!" for Cuba and Commander in Chief Fidel Castro were constantly heard. In the morning, Fidel attending the farewell speech made by outgoing leader Leon Febres-Cordero. In the early afternoon, Fidel travelled to the residence of the Costa Rican ambassador to Ecuador, where he had a private conversation with President Oscar Arias. It was reported that the two presidents discussed the problems of Central America with special emphasis placed on Nicaragua. Fidel also met with Ecuadoran President Rodrigo Borja in his home. The meeting was held moments before Borja once again appeared before the Congress to receive the presidential sash and to be sworn in constitutionally de rigueur. In this ceremony, the chiefs of states and foreign delegations had an opportunity for more than half an hour to speak among themselves without any protocol whatsoever. Fidel sat between former Ecuadoran President Osvaldo Hurtado and Costa Rican President Oscar Arias. He held a lively conversation with them and also with Apostolic Nuncio Msgr Pablo Munoz Vega. Fidel moved from his seat at a certain point to speak for several minutes with President Virgilio Barco of Colombia, a country with which Cuba does not have diplomatic relations. The chief of the Cuban revolution also spoke with Argentine President Raul Alfonsin. It is known that Fidel requested a private talk with him. When Venezuelan leader Jaime Lusinchi entered the room and began greeting his colleagues from other countries, he stopped and spoke exclusively to Fidel. Uruguayan President Julio Maria Sanguinetti also stopped to visit with the Cuban president and Fidel spoke briefly to him. Fidel also spoke with Portuguese head of state Mario Soares. Fidel was seen to remark with laughter on the details of the congressional mural when its author, painter Oswaldo Guayasamin, greeted the visitors from the main platform. U.S. Secretary of State George Shultz finally appeared during the afternoon session. It was reported that Shultz would not attend because the letters (CIA) were painted on Guayasamin's mural. According to Ecuadoran protocol, Schultz was seated exactly in front of that detail on the mural, just a few meters away from the visiting leaders. The head of the U.S. delegation was neither jeered at nor applauded by the more than 3,000 people who filled the parliamentary floor and who became ominously silent when Shultz entered. This contrasted with the reiterated "vivas!" for Latin American brotherhood and for Fidel, who several times had to express his appreciation for the greetings by raising his hand. One can see images of Fidel and other revolutionary leaders in the murals painted around the Ecuadoran Congress and on other streets in Quito. Observers have commented that the talks between the presidents attending the inauguration of Rodrigo Borja can be a bitter medicine for the Reagan administration's plans for Central America. The same sources say that it is not because they wanted to do so that some Latin American presidents upon arrival in Quito placed emphasis on affirming that the time has arrived for Latin American unity and integration. [sentence as heard] Last night President Rodrigo Borja offered a dinner at the National Palace for all the chiefs of state present in Quito. It was reported that Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega will arrive in the next few hours at the invitation of the Ecuadoran leader. Relations between Nicaragua and Ecuador will be renewed today with the signing of a protocol in the Foreign Ministry of the South American country. Borja said that this would be his first foreign policy act since relations were broken by outgoing leader Leon Febres-Cordero. Yesterday during his inauguration, Rodrigo Borja described the crisis in his country as the greatest in the history of that nation. In his first message to the nation, Borja announced a dignified and sovereign policy that will recover Ecuadoran prestige abroad. He said that it is impossible for Ecuador at this time to pay its foreign debt because it is first necessary to attend to the needs of the people. He clarified that this is not a moratorium but a search for unconventional formulas for a solution to the problem. The time has arrived to collectively declare peace in Latin America and to assume a loyal and firm commitment to promote regional cooperation, said Borja. Rodrigo Borja is the 37th constitutional president of Ecuador. Also yesterday during Borja's presidential inauguration, prominent politicians and people gave their opinion of the presence of President Fidel Castro. Portuguese leader Mario Soares said the meeting he held with Fidel was very interesting and he expressed his satisfaction with the talks. Colombian Foreign Minister Julio Londono stressed Fidel's gesture of attending the transfer of government in Ecuador. He said it is another demonstration that Cuba wants to become more integrated with Latin America. Mexican Foreign Secretary Bernardo Sepulveda said the Cuban leader's visit shows that Cuba has become more integrated with Latin America and that his visit is one more step in that direction. Former U.S. Ambassador to El Salvador Robert White said that Fidel's visit once again proves that the U.S. policy of isolating Cuba from Latin America is not working. -END-