Colombia–United States relations

The two continents of north and South America geographically spread from North Pole to South Pole, which has a single economic infrastructure. The super power United States of America maintaining the economic infrastructure and this factor are proved by the history of twentieth century. The principle transportation route of this economic infrastructure the Pan-American Highway system also runs through these two continents approximately 30,000 km. Colombia a country which geographically situated in the middle of this economic infrastructure also the Pan-American Highway connecting to the South America through the country. The petroleum, other natural energy, minerals and agricultural land makes Colombia a significant economic factor of two continents.

The United States spend approximately one percent (1%) of their military budget as military aid to Colombia for the purpose of reducing the activities of leftists rebels which opposes to U.S. policies over Colombia. From year 2005 U.S. increases their troop and military contractors cap up to 800 and 600. Some analyzers believe that the main CIA centers stationed at Bogota, Medellin and Cali and the secret field operational bases are placed at oil rich Arauca and Putumayo departments of Colombia. The U.S. and their allies say they are not allowing any anti-democratic powers to rise in the continent and opposite side says U.S. is gaining wealth from Colombia and they want continue this.

The historical background of the U.S. involvement in Colombia goes back to 1920’s the U.S. troops arrived to Colombia to stop the United Fruit Company (UFCO) workers strike but before that Colombian army massacre the civilians. From May 1964 U.S. government directly involved in Colombia to prevent the leftist powers comes into power.

U.S. Aided Social and Military Programs

Historical Background

January 1st 1959 Fidel Castro and Che Guevara lead communists overthrew the dictator Fulgencio Batista’s government and Che Guevara started traveling all over the Latin America, Africa and Asian countries and introducing the new Cuba’s government and their Socialist Revolution. He also transmit the “message of solidarity” with Cuba. The USSR Prime Minister Nikita Khruschev also stated that their government will support all the “liberation struggles” of the people who suffered from imperialism. The United States and their close allied United Kingdom taken the current situation as a serious threat to them and they started reacting to it.

After considering the CIA report which was prepared by a team of intelligence landed to Colombia in 1959, the U.S. government decided “Colombian Communists” are very dangerous and also a serious threat to the continent. From that date onwards U.S. aided several programs to reduce the activities of communists among the society of Colombia. The special section of U.S. intelligence aware of all the activities which relating to Colombia and taking quick actions to stop the activities which they consider as a threat.

The most recent U.S. intelligence operation is tracking the Internet and E-mails which relating to Colombian activities and also unfavorable to U.S. policies there. According to U.S. news releases they captured some FARC leaders recently by tracking their E-mails and also extradited them to U.S.

Plan LAZO

The “Plan LAZO” or in English “Plan LASO” also called Latin American Security Operation was the first U.S. aided project activated in Colombian history in early 1960’s. It consisting of military operations as well as social and economic programs. Most of the analysts say these programs were similar to U.S. launched Phoenix Program in Vietnam.

Plan Colombia

See main article : Plan Colombia

This project consisting of highest U.S. aided programs launched in recent history. The original plan was proposed by the former Colombian President Andres Pastrana and it’s aim was to end the four decades of armed conflict and to reduce the drug trafficking. Some believe his main intention is to bring peace and prosperity to country and not to attack the leftist rebels. He said that he wanted the leftist rebels to come into the main democratic political stream. But later he needs more funds to implement this project and asked funds from United States and other friendly nations. Then the United States agree to give the funds but they want amend this original plan and introduce some military training aid and advice to launch counter drug military operations. But finally these operations turned against the leftist rebels and the four years of peace process (1998-2002) stopped and again started the military campaign.

Most of the U.S. and other analysts say the project was totally failed due to the more consideration of military actions instead of economic and social development of the country. During the peace process there were civilian massacres taken place in rural parts of the country and the people say U.S. and the Colombian government did not take proper actions to stop the civilian massacres done by the paramilitaries. According to the human rights groups such as Human Rights Watch say there are evidence of the Colombian military involvement in the massacres by providing facilities to paramilitaries carry out the civilian killings. Most of the Colombian military officers responsible for the civilian massacres are past graduates of U.S. military school of America (SOA). According to the FARC-EP spokesman that the Colombian military launched a secret operation to kill their leader Manuel Marulanda, by using the army snipers around the San Vicente del Caguan area, which was given to the FARC by the government of Pastrana to launch their political campaign. FARC believe that these type secret military operations carried out on the advice of the U.S. intelligence under cover of the Plan Colombia.

According to the U.S. government spokesmen the project Plan Colombian was successful and it reduces the coca cultivation highly and also strengthening of the Colombian military draws back the leftist rebels to capture the state power. But the U.S. government did not gave the complete aid for the project only the partial amount they spent. Most of the given aid used for the military and the aerial fumigation operations on coca fields. The special project Colombia of U.S. Center for International Policy monitor the entire Plan Colombia and it’s spokesman Adam Issacson does not believe the success of the project and his idea also favorable for the economic and social development of the country will reduce the four decades of political conflict.

Plan Patriota

This project is a very high cost military campaign aided by the United States for the aim of destroying the leftist rebels from Colombian soil. The Colombian President Alvaro Uribe Velez took office in mid of year 2002 and he request the U.S. military aid to destroy the rebels militarily and hope to bring peace to the country. His father was a mayor of Medellin city and was killed by the hands of the leftist rebels while attempting to kidnap. According to the news releases this project totally monitored by the U.S. military experts attached to the U.S. Southern Command. The major military operations carried out in the southern part of the country which believed to be the heartland of the leftist rebels from decades.

The Colombian army’s counter insurgency battalion was trained by the U.S. Special Forces and these battalions participate the military operations in dense southern jungles to destroy the leftist rebel military bases. After starting the Plan Patriota military project there was a reduction of leftist rebel activities through out the country significantly. The U.S. aided Colombian military uses the U.S. supplied helicopters in all the infantry operations to clear the rebel control areas. The internationally broadcast television channels also showing the movie clips of the Colombian military operations and it shows the success of the project. Most of the military analyzers say the main cause of the success of the project are the accurate U.S. intelligence reports and the commitment of the President Alvaro Uribe Velez to end the four decade old armed conflict. Some are saying the most of the damage happened to the civilians and not for rebels among them Garry Leech highly criticized the project due to civilian damages.

But in February 2005 the leftist rebels started attacking the Colombian military heavily in a different style of strategy comparing to their earlier military attacks. According to news releases most of the attacks succeeded by the leftist rebels and President Alvaro Uribe Velez and Plan Patriota seems to be questionable of the success. There were series of attacks against the Colombian military through out the year in various parts of the country argued to continue the Plan Patriota with U.S. military aid until to achieve it’s final goal.

Air Bridge Denial Program

The Air Bridge Denial Program or ABD Program was introduced by the United States to monitor the domestic Air-crafts which suspected to be transportation of drugs as well as illegal fire arms for the Colombian leftist rebels and other armed groups. The program was stopped in April 2001 due to a shoot down of civilian aircraft in Peru and also 2 U.S. people were killed. The program was resumed again in August 2003 buy introducing more safety methods to avoid the accidental shoot down of civilian air crafts. The U.S. has spent around $ 70 million so far and around $ 30 million to be spent in fiscal year 2006. According to the reports published by the press there were around 50 aircrafts located out of 400 suspicious aircrafts by the Colombian Air Force with the support of the U.S. military in year 2005.

U.S. Influenced Economic Deals

Historical Background

The history of the economic deals goes back to 1920’s that the United Fruit Company strongly operated in Colombian soil. Later the economic intervention expanded up to Colombia’s oil pipelines creating for taking the oil into the United States. The present situation is the Free Trade Area discussion with Colombian government is going on.

Free Trade Area (FTA)

Both governments announced that they agree for the free trade pact on February 27, 2006. But there were protest campaigns against the free trade pact launched through out the country.

The new trade deal calls on Colombia to open its market by eliminating tariffs on 82 percent of U.S. industrial and agricultural products and eventually remove entirely, tariffs on U.S. poultry, corn and rice. Some analysts warned the government that the disappearance of rice in the country due the FTA, there will be more cultivation of coca might take place. But not only the issue of poultry, corn and rice tariffs, they also acquiesced on their demand that the allowing of a significant increase in the amount of Colombian sugar that is imported into the United States. Also the United States allow the importation of 350,000 metric tons of Colombian sugar annually and the export of 50,000 metric tons annually to the U.S. market.

U.S. Intelligence in Colombia

Historical Background

The U.S. and Colombia intelligence activities has a long history such as 1920’s when the United Fruit Company workers strike happened. The U.S. administration decided that the communists of Colombia, is a serious threat to their economic and political activities and there should be a intelligence gathering system about their activities. After establishing the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) in 1947 the first major intelligence operation was taken place in Marquetalia region of Tolima department in 1959. The group of intelligence experts monitored the activities of communists in the area and produced a report for the U.S. government. Based on that report U.S. assisted the “Operation Marquetalia”, the massive military offensive against the communists as a part of a long lasting anti-communist project named “Plan LAZO”. According to U.S. that accuracy of their intelligence reports the communists were defeated and prevent them to take the state power in the country. The U.S. intelligence became a part of the Colombian society due to their activities in the country for more than four decades.

Operational Regions

According to the four decades of facts regarding the U.S. intelligence many analyzers believe the main CIA operational base located in Bogota and there are another two bases in Medellin and Cali respectively. The special field operational teams are operating in oil rich Arauca, Putumayo and some where in the leftists rebels strong hold southern part of the country. The main operational bases are for the purpose of gathering any kind of intelligence and establishing strong links with the concerned people and the organizations. The field operational teams are gathering intelligence of military activities and major income routes of leftist rebels.

Military Intelligence

The military intelligence work is split into several ways of activities. The Colombian military officers have close ties with U.S. intelligence and also believe to be paying some incentives to them, granting visas to visit to the United States, facilitate their children’s education in U.S.A., medical facilities in U.S.A. to their closers and etc. The other part is doing directly by U.S. intelligence people believe to be the following activities on leftist rebels, aerial photography from satellites and low flying air crafts of suspicious locations, special army recon teams, covert operatives, special high tech surveillance equipments used to monitor the drug and weapons transportation through the country borders and also the monitoring of tactical operations carried out by the Colombian military in rebels areas.

Political Intelligence

The U.S. intelligence experts believe that the political power of the Colombia is also a significant factor as well as the military. Then the independent analyzers believe the establishment of a special intelligence sections on political activities of the country and also spending more money for it. As an example they supported President Alvaro Uribe to come into power and they believe he may be more active against leftist activities as his father also killed by the hands of the leftist rebels. Also believe to be U.S. intelligence supporting the leftist politicians and political parties, which do not have good relationship with leftist rebels. In the Colombian political history some times communists against with Dr.Jorge Elicer Gaitan and they openly criticized each other. The killing of thousands of Patriotic Union (UP) supporters and activists by the paramilitaries believe to be U.S. intelligence secretly supported them. The U.S. political intelligence believed that the Patriotic Union is the political wing of the leftist rebels and it will be a serious threat to the pro-United States politics in the country. The U.S. political intelligence workers believe to be infiltrated in political parties, trade unions, human rights organizations, religious movements, electronic and other media organizations, business community and all the other concerned parties.

Monitoring Media and Internet

There is a special U.S. intelligence section believed to be monitoring the media carrying the news about Colombia such as “telesur”. Once the “telesur” telecast a documentary program about the FARC leader Manuel Marulanda and the Colombian government suddenly decided, not allowing the “telesur” in the country. Also in the other side encouraging media such as El Tiempo news paper, RCN and CNN to carry out more news about the leftist rebels and their human rights violations, drug trafficking and sabotaging activities to cripple the economy.

The U.S. intelligence believed to be highly involved in the monitoring of Internet and E-mail. The Websites carried out the information and media releases of the leftist rebels such as “www.farc-ep.org”, “www.redresistencia.org” and “Colombia Journal” believed to be highly monitoring the information published there and the IP Addresses of the frequently accessing of these Websites. The U.S. media released that the capturing of some leftist rebel leaders recently were done by the tracking of their E-mails. The U.S. President George W. Bush stated recently that the monitoring of the E-mails should be included in the U.S. law for the purpose of reducing the growing threat against the United States by the global terrorism. Some information technology specialists believe that the expert team of U.S. intelligence used “Spyware” programs to monitor the activities of the suspected computers in the world.

See also

• Colombian Armed Conflict
• La Violencia
• Marquetalia Republic

References

• Diario de la resistencia de Marquetalia, Jacobo Arenas, Ediciones Abejón Mono, 1972 (Espanol)

• Blood and Fire: La Violencia in Antioquia, Colombia, 1946-1953, Mary Roldan, Duke University Press, ISBN 0822329182, 2002

• The Profits of Extermination: How U.S. Corporate Power is Destroying Colombia, Aviva Chomsky and Francisco Ramírez Cuellar, Common Courage Press, ISBN 1567513220, 2005

External Links

• "Colombia Journal Home". Colombia Journal Home Page. Retrieved February 26. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
• "Colombia Program". Center for International Policy. Retrieved February 26. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
• "FARC Official website". Retrieved February 26. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help) (In Spanish, English, Italian, Portuguese, Russian and German)
• "Marquetalia and the FARC". Paul Wolf. Retrieved February 26. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)