Bush, Colombia & Narco-Politics

By Andrés Cala
March 9, 2008 (Originally published August 8, 2007)

Editor's Note: On March 1, Colombian armed forces crossed into Ecuador to kill 24 leftist Colombian guerrillas, including a senior commander, Raul Reyes. The attack touched off a confrontation pitting Colombia against Ecuador and Venezuela, which condemned the violation of Ecuador's sovereignty and noted that Reyes was a key figure in negotiations over prisoner releases and a possible reduction in political tensions.

The Bush administration defended Colombia's right to attack "terrorists" even if that requires crossing a border, a position echoed by this year's presidential candidates, including Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. Indeed, from the opinion circles of Washington, there was almost no criticism of Colombian President Alvaro Uribe although his inner circle has long been linked to both right-wing terrorism and cocaine trafficking.