Chavez
Threatens to Cut Venezuela’s
Trade Ties With Colombia
(VOA) Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is threatening to end his country’s
trade ties with Colombia, in response to last week’s Colombian military raid
on a
leftist rebel outpost in Ecuador.
Mr. Chavez
made the threat Wednesday in Caracas during a joint news conference
with Ecuador’s president, Rafael Correa.
The two heads
of state have condemned the cross-border attack last Saturday
that killed more than 20 Colombian FARC rebels, including FARC
commander Raul Reyes. Mr. Chavez sent thousands of Venezuelan
troops to Colombia’s border, but said he is not seeking an
armed conflict.
The Organization
of American States approved a resolution Wednesday calling
Colombia’s attack a violation of Ecuador’s sovereignty and
international law, but stopped short of condemning the action.
Ecuadorean
diplomats welcomed the OAS statement statement that Colombia
acted illegally, but Ecuadorean President Correa says he wants
the international group to explicitly condemn Bogota for the
attack.
Colombian
officials have defended the incursion, and President Alvaro
Uribe has accused Venezuela of financing and supporting the
FARC.
U.S. Defense
Secretary Robert Gates said Wednesday that a military conflict
is unlikely, and also noted that Colombia’s military can successfully
defend the country.
Spanish Foreign
Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos says he reached an agreement
with his counterparts from Ecuador, Maria Isabel Salvador,
and Colombia, Fernando Araujo, to begin negotiations aimed
at restoring normal relations.