Peruvian president's upcoming US visit aims to bolster alliance

Peruvian President Ollanta Humala will travel to the United States on Monday to meet his counterpart Barack Obama and to consolidate the strategic alliance between the two countries. According to a report carried in the "El Peruano", the official daily newspaper of Peru, via the visit, President Humala is to oversee signing of agreements aimed to strengthen cooperation in education and in the efforts to combat narcotics, as well as to support small and medium enterprises. During his visit, the Peruvian president will also meet with officials from the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). He will also tour the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in an effort to boost cooperation in undergraduate and graduate students' exchange. Also, the Pacific Alliance (PA), a Latin American bloc where Obama has a special interest, is expected to be discussed when the two heads of state meet. The Pacific Alliance groups Peru, Chile, Colombia and Mexico.