Hugo Chávez is playing a dangerous game with Colombia, and indirectly, with the US. Today he announced that he was shutting down Venezuela's Embassy in Bogotá, unilaterally plunging diplomatic relations to its worst level since the Gran Colombia split in 1830. He also announced a large buildup of troops alongside the border, and insulted Pres. Uribe for the n-th time, calling him a "criminal" and the head of a "narco-government."

This piece of scum Chavez will bring down Venezuela with his stupid ignorant and vile action. Viva la raza!



Venezuela on war alert after killing - Times Online

This is in response to Columbian troops crossing the border of Equador and killing the leader of the FARC scum Raúl Reyes . He had previously made a show by "negotiating " the release of hostages that FARC had kidnapped.

Chavez is a joke. He would love to have a distraction because even with oil money pouring into the country he has not delivered ;the economy is close to collapse . The people are becoming disillusioned ;evidenced by his failure to get his referendum passed legitimizing his dictatorship.

When he came to power he purged the officers corp so I question how effective his military is . But Columbia needs our support against the dual threat posed by Equador and Venezuela.This is more of the same attempt to export his "Bolivarian" Revolution . This could get dicey.

I don't think this distracts Venezuelans from domestic concerns. First, food shortages and inflation are very real problems experienced on a daily basis. Second, the rally-around-the-flag thing will not work under the circumstances… Venezuelans do not want to spend blood and treasure defending FARC whom they are far more likely to view as thugs and Drug-traffickers than romantic rebels.

Two days ago, President Chávez ordered 10 mechanized batallions to the border in preparation for who-knows-what... but the mobilizations from Caracas ended up getting delayed yesterday because taxi drivers in La Victoria blocked the strategically critical Central Regional Highway for seven hours as they protested the crime wave that grips their town.

The military can't get where they're going because they've been impeded by taxi drivers?!

This whole thing is like watching a cartoon:

http://www.cartoonstock.com/newscart.../kscn1097l.jpg

I imagine Chavez has to guess how far the US will go to defend Columbia against his aggression. I think this is all posturing ;but one never knows what a loon will do.

And now the truth is out about Chavez' intentions and his long time relationship with FARC .

FOXNews.com - Seized Laptop Shows Chavez-Rebel Ties - International News | News of the World | Middle East News | Europe News

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Copies of 13 documents were sent to reporters Tuesday by Colombia's national police chief, Gen. Oscar Naranjo. He revealed their existence Sunday as his government came under a withering diplomatic assault for violating Ecuador's territory with the raid.
They indicate that Chavez, seeking to raise the FARC's stature and relieve it of its international pariah status, shares their goal of isolating and discrediting Colombia's president, Alvaro Uribe.

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I will leave the mention of Obama later in the article for your interpretation. And I will try to keep it in perspective that they may have been in the process of purchasing 50 kg of uranium to possibly make a "dirty bomb" .

Tom

Word from inside Caracas is that troop movement has been minimal, and General Baduel said yesterday that it was all part of a "reality show" and a "media event.”

A personal testimony I came across from a blog… “Regarding the rapid deployment of troops. On my regular drive of the Lara-Zulia yesterday afternoon, heading west out of Barquisimeto, we first came across a truckload of 40 soldiers or so on the back of a grua (tow truck). Then we came across another truck filled with soldiers; this one stopped so the soldiers could throw their garbage out the back onto the road. We passed a bus full of soldiers near Carora moving along slowly, not faster than 40kph. Shortly after, we did finally see a truck of soldiers actually moving along at a normal pace. And then out of El Venado, we passed two gandolas (lowries) carrying two military tanks each. They were stopped on the side of the road. One of the gandolas had the hood up.”

MTV should exploit Venezuela. Just record all of the presidential TV appearances, some street footage, Globovision, Mario Silva, etc...

You got a hit Reality TV show.

But on the serious side, and it may come to that… "They say the new president of their country will be (Barack) Obama," noting that Obama rejects both the Bush administration's free trade agreement with Colombia and the current military aid program.” Do you believe what is said about Obama is true…do you believe Obama would betray the Columbians?

I was torn about including that quote in my comments above . I would like to believe that statement is false .But I do not know Obama. He is very much a blank slate . His web site does have one reference however regarding Colombia which really doesn't say much :

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The United States has invested a great deal—nearly $5 billion during the past 7 years—to help stabilize Colombia. A more peaceful, just, and stable Colombia is undoubtedly in our national interest. It is imperative, however, that greater peace and stability contribute to a reduction in the flow of drugs from Colombia to the United States. Thus far, we have not seen the kind of drop off that the effective pursuit of our interests demands.
President Bush's closest ally in the region—Colombian President Alvaro Uribe—is embroiled in a controversy that has led to the arrest of eight of his supporters in the Colombian Congress and his former confidant and former chief of Colombia's secret police for ties to the country's narco-terrorist paramilitaries. President Bush must be careful to keep the pursuit of U.S. interests in Colombia distinct from specific personalities, or personal relationships. The further consolidation of legitimate governing institutions in Colombia – and the extension of their reach throughout Colombia – are clearly in the national interest of the United States, and the interest of Colombia.

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Statement of Senator Obama on Latin America | U.S. Senator Barack Obama

But he did make a statement on the current "crisis"(sorta) .

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Obama Statement on Recent Events near Colombia's Borders - March 03, 2008 "The Colombian people have suffered for more than four decades at the hands of a brutal terrorist insurgency, and the Colombian government has every right to defend itself against the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). The recent targeted killing of a senior FARC leader must not be used as a pretense to ratchet up tensions or to threaten the stability of the region. The presidents of Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela have a responsibility to ensure that events not spiral out of control, and to peacefully address any disputes through active diplomacy with the help of international actors."

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Contrast that with Hillary's much stronger statement :

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“Hugo Chavez's order yesterday to send ten battalions to the Colombian border is unwarranted and dangerous. The Colombian state has every right to defend itself against drug trafficking terrorist organizations that have kidnapped innocent civilians, including American citizens. By praising and supporting the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, Chavez is openly siding with terrorists that threaten Colombian democracy and the peace and security of the region. Rather than criticizing Colombia's actions in combating terrorist groups in the border regions, Venezuela and Ecuador should work with their neighbor to ensure that their territories no longer serve as safe havens for terrorist groups. After reviewing this situation, I am hopeful that the government of Ecuador will determine that its interests lie in closer cooperation with Colombia on this issue. Hugo Chavez must call a halt to this provocative action. As president, I will work with our partners in the region and the OAS to support democracy, promote an end to conflict, and to press Chavez to change course.”

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Sorry Obama... Hillary has a point when she critiques your leadership ability.

What a contrast between the two, thanks, I was not aware of the two responses. Makes me wonder what part of English Obama doesn't understand…Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia - the FARC, by its initials in Spanish. The FARC has long been deeply engaged in drug trafficking

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is an ally of the FARC and Obama doesn't even condemn his action.

But this is serious stuff; as people are pointing out, there are trucks on the road. Real troops are moving, and real weapons are being brandished. Unexpected things can happen. Uribe has acted with admirable restraint so far and should be commended for it.

Obama's "international actors " have spoken... the OAS passed a resolution condemning Colombia.

Regional bloc says Ecuador's sovereignty was violated - International Herald Tribune

“The Organization of American States approved a resolution on Wednesday declaring the Colombian military raid into Ecuador a violation of sovereignty,… The measure stopped short of condemning Colombia for the raid,…”

The thing I find interesting is that both the OAS and Obama neglect to mention the UN Security Council Resolution 1,373 - through which the security council:
“1. Decides that all States shall:

(a) Prevent and suppress the financing of terrorist acts;
(b) Criminalize the wilful provision or collection, by any means, directly or indirectly, of funds by their nationals or in their territories with the intention that the funds should be used, or in the knowledge that they are to be used, in order to carry out terrorist acts;

(c) Freeze without delay funds and other financial assets or economic resources of persons who commit, or attempt to commit, terrorist acts...

2. Decides also that all States shall:
(a) Refrain from providing any form of support, active or passive, to entities or persons involved in terrorist acts, including by suppressing recruitment of members of terrorist groups and eliminating the supply of weapons to terrorists;

(b) Take the necessary steps to prevent the commission of terrorist acts, including by provision of early warning to other States by exchange of information;

(c) Deny safe haven to those who finance, plan, support, or commit terrorist acts, or provide safe havens…”

United Nations Security Council Resolution 1373 - Wikisource

This is one thing that bothers me when Obama talks about having sit-down-talks with Iran.

President Bush is trying to get Congress to pass a Colombia -US Free trade agreement. This would be a no lose prospect for the US . Their products already enter our markets duty free through the Andean Trade Preferences Act. This deal would allow US exporters greater access to Colombian markets.

Let's see if Democrat obstructionists like Senators Chris Dodd and Robert Menendez use this OAS resolution as a way to block this trade deal. Then we will hear them charge the Bush adm with alienating our allies. No friend is more deserving of our support right now than Alvaro Uribe.

Interestingly enough just today…….”One of the world's most notorious arms dealers, suspected of supplying weapons to the Taliban and Al Qaeda and of pouring huge arms shipments into Africa's civil wars with his own private air fleet, was arrested by Thai authorities in a hotel here on Thursday. His capture was prompted by a tipoff from the United States in connection with the procurement of weapons for the Colombian FARC rebels.


Mr. Bout's arrest in Thailand followed a Colombian military raid into Ecuador on Saturday that left 24 guerrillas dead and resulted in the capture of a laptop computer belonging to a senior FARC rebel commander. It was not immediately clear whether the arrest and the seizure of information on the laptop were related.”

Major Arms Dealer Arrested in Thailand - New York Times

Did you read about the meeting at the3 Group at Rio Summit ? Bizarre ! They were in each other's face at the beginning of the meeting and by the end it was if there were no crisis at all. They all shook hands and restored diplomatic relations etc. The puffed up Chavez certainly looked deflated .

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/08/wo...8colombia.html



Probably Uribe had only released a small part of what was learned from the computers that were captured in the raid. If the information he released was enough for Intepol to capture a Russian arms dealer on the fly then just imagine how much dirt he held back for his own leverage. I bet there is concrete proof of Venezuelan and Equadorian finacing of the FARC terrorists .

Chavez said trade with Colombia should "keep increasing;"…this two days after saying he didn't want even "a grain of rice" from his neighbor.":)

President Uribe's huge gamble in ordering the air strike that killed Reyes appears to have paid off.