233. Letter From President Carter to Dominican President-elect Guzman1
Please accept my most sincere and warm congratulations on your election as President of the Dominican Republic.
This is a most important day for the Dominican Republic and for relations between our two countries. The people of your country have completed their electoral process and have freely voted you—the candidate of the opposition party—as their next President. They have provided a democratic example for the rest of the world, and of that they should be proud.
I hope that the temporary divisions which any political campaign brings will soon be healed, and the unity of the Dominican Republic reinforced for the development challenges which lie ahead.
I look forward to your inauguration in August, and to working with you to maintain and strengthen the excellent relations between our two countries and peoples. As the Dominican Republic prepares to go forward under your leadership, the people of the U.S. join me in extending you best wishes for the success of your government.2
Sincerely,
- Source: Carter Library, National Security Affairs, Staff Material, North/South, Pastor, Country, Box 16, Folder: Dominican Republic, 9/77–6/78. No classification marking.↩
- In a May 31 reply to Carter, Guzman expressed his gratitude for Carter’s letter. (Carter Library, National Security Affairs, Brzezinski Material, President’s Correspondence with Foreign Leaders File, Box 5, Folder: Dominican Republic: President Antonio Guzman, 8/77–11/79)↩