Business is a useful tool in politics, but it's not enough. You need much more than to be a good businessman, to be a good politician.

I grew up middle class. My father was a public functionary who didn't leave an inheritance, just debts.

I would say that the U.S. has overlooked Latin America. Their priorities have always been somewhere else. And that is a problem and that is a mistake.

I believe in a real democratic system, with a state of law and freedom of the press. I believe in a free, open-market economy integrated with the world. And I believe in equality of opportunity. Those are my basic beliefs. On top of that, of course, I believe in some moral values.

Chile is not a rich country in terms of gas, or oil or coal, but we are extremely rich in terms of the energies of the future.

Economic and financial crisis are getting much more usual, and they are not confined to a given country but they immediately spread all over the world, and you have to be prepared for that.

I'm a person with a lot of affection for adventure - I scuba dive, skydive, fly helicopters.

You will never solve the American problems just by printing money.