US General seeks to strengthen South American military ties

By PATTY NIEBERG
Associated Press/Report for America

DENVER (AP) — The U.S. military’s new Southern Command Gen. Laura Richardson says she’s focused on strengthening military relationships with South American countries despite fraught politics. Richardson is the highest ranking female in the U.S. Army and was in Denver on Friday to speak at a graduation ceremony at her alma mater, Metropolitan State University. With her new position, Richardson says she’s thinking about how to maintain relationships with nations large and small. The general says she wants to ensure that allied nations never feel untouched or that the U.S. is not partnering with them.