Noriega also touched on the importance of clean and transparent Presidential elections. “We look forward to working with the winner of next year’s election. The Dominican people expect a clean election and the nation is perfectly capable of achieving this. The US shares these interests”. Roger Noriega thanked the Dominican people for having sent troops to Iraq, saying that “their sacrifices and bravery would not be forgotten”. An interesting footnote to Noriega’s address in the national Congress is that according to Diario Libre’s “El Espia” sidebar, two versions of the speech were distributed by the US embassy. The paragraph which appears in one version but is absent from the other, reads as follows: “There is no greater honor than an elected leader who puts the national interest above his own personal concerns. We are confident that you will carry out the responsibilities you have taken on for the sake of your country, because, after all, that is why you are here”.