For peace—shalom—on Colombia's border

BY BRIAN J. STOCK

War in South America was narrowly averted this March when Colombian troops crossed the Ecuadorian border to strike at a prominent rebel faction. Oil-rich Venezuela accused Colombia, an important American ally, of violating Ecuador's sovereignty and mobilized troops on the Colombian border. For a few days, war between Venezuela and Colombia looked imminent. And though the crisis was allayed through a peaceful summit, the underlying tensions between these countries remain unresolved.

In response to that incident in March, Ecuador recently broke off diplomatic relations until the current president of Colombia, Álvaro Uribe, steps down. Additionally, Ecuador is modernizing its army and stepping up its border patrols. In July, President Rafael Correa of Ecuador, who has a radio show in Quito, the country's capital, declared, "Our sovereignty has been trampled on and we have been disrespected" (The Los Angeles Times, July 13, 2008).

While there are some hopeful signs—Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez has attempted to mend ties with Colombia and has rejected the Marxist guerrilla warfare of Colombian rebels—the stakes still are high. Colombia is seen as a critical US ally in limiting drug trafficking and extending free trade. So if conflict should break out between Colombia and one of its neighbors, it's possible that the US would become involved in some way in order to support its ally.