Amicus,
You're discussing oranges (IMF) while the rest of this thread is discussing apples (a kidnapping case). And my guess is that, even regarding the IMF, the US did not push the IMF into meeting with the DR. The US might do so for a Brazil or Mexico, but I seriously doubt the DR. No, the IMF is talking to the DR because the latter asked for the discussions. [If you wish to debate this point further, I urge you to do so in the IMF thread, not here.]
Now, regarding the real topic of this thread, the kidnapping. Erickxson, Tony's more or less right. The US Embassy usually does not go out of its way to get into criminal cases in the DR involving US citizens; they even sometimes have to be pushed into checking on the condition & cases of their citizens who have been thrown in jail (often for more without formal charges). You may think (perhaps because it usually is portrayed this way in the movies) that whenever a US citizen insists on "calling my embassy," that FSOs jump in and do everything possible to aid their citizens. But it often doesn't work like that.
They won't lend police help in a kidnapping case in the DR involving a US citizen, unless of course that person is a US diplomat or politician or someone with alot of "pull" -- for example, if Henry Kissinger was kidnapped from his condo at Casa de Campo, I suspect that Dubya would indeed send FBI men to "advise & assist" the Dominican police in their investigation!
But for most cases, they'll do little until political pressure is applied on State -- usually by a Congressman or Senator. Even then, the most they do is "monitor" the case and periodically "express their concern" to local authorities -- just enough to tell the Congressman that they're "doing something." So my prior post was not tongue-in-cheek. It was reflecting what I have seen happen before in the DR.:ermm:
Regards,
Keith