U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon E. Panetta, left, poses for a photo with El Salvadorian Minister of Defense Jose Atilio Benitez Parada at a conference for Defense Ministers in Punta del Este, Uruguay, Oct. 7, 2012. Panetta was in Uruguay as part of a South America visit to strengthen defense partnerships with countries in the region. (DoD photo by Erin A. Kirk-Cuomo/Released).