Presidents for Peace.

DURING A JOINT VISIT to the OAS, the presidents of Ecuador and Peru reiterated their commitment to peace and stressed the importance of continued economic integration in the region.

President Jamil Mahuad of Ecuador and President Alberto Fujimori of Peru received standing ovations in the Hall of the Americas, where diplomats from around the hemisphere gathered in February to salute the peace treaties signed by the two nations in October 1998. The accords settled a border dispute that had lasted half a century.

"The agreement we signed was the product of the free will of the two countries, not something imposed by anyone," President Mahuad said, noting that peace could thus be lasting and firm.

President Fujimori characterized the joint visit to the OAS as "an important milestone in Latin American unity" and added, "we have come to jointly and convincingly express our firm commitment to and will for peace." He stressed that the armed forces in both countries had advocated a peaceful, rather than military, solution to the longstanding dispute.

The Ecuadoran head of state vowed that during his...