WASHINGTON, United States (CMC) — The United States Department of State says acting Secretary of State John Sullivan met with Haitian President Jovenel Moise on Saturday, on the margins of the Summit of the Americas in Lima, Peru.

The State Department said Sullivan and Moise on Friday discussed security and economic growth in Haiti, “as well as democracy in the region.”

“Acting Secretary Sullivan thanked President Moise for his leadership as Chairman of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and urged consensus within the organization to promote and defend democracy,” the statement said.

It said both men also discussed the importance of continued support for the Haitian National Police.

“The two leaders agreed that Haiti and its partners should increase efforts to improve the investment climate in Haiti to create jobs for Haitians and increase economic prosperity,” the State Department said.

Earlier this year – in February, Sullivan abruptly cancelled a planned trip to Haiti.

At the time, he was expected to hold talks with CARICOM leaders during their three-day inter-sessional summit in the French-speaking Caribbean country.

The State Department had said that Sullivan would “focus discussions on issues of mutual interest to the United States and the Caribbean, including energy diversification, regional security and economic development.”

Sullivan’s proposed visit would have come as US lawmakers, Haitians and other Caribbean nationals in the United States had expressed profound outrage over President Donald J Trump’s alleged disparaging remarks about Haitians and Africans.