Pubdate: Sat, 10 Aug 2002 Source: New York Times (NY) Copyright: 2002 The New York Times Company Contact: http://www.nytimes.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/298 Section: International Author: Juan Forero SHIFTING COLOMBIA'S AID: U.S. FOCUSES ON REBELS BOGOTA, Colombia, Aug. 9 - Just as a new president, Alvaro Uribe Velez, begins his term determined to combat Colombia's leftist guerrillas, the Bush administration has delivered a powerful new tool: authorization to use nearly $1.7 billion in American military aid directly against the rebels. Under a little-remarked provision in the antiterrorism package President Bush signed last week, President Uribe can now use dozens of American-supplied helicopters as well as Colombian soldiers who were trained by United States troops in operations against the rebels and also right-wing paramilitaries. Previous guidelines limited the use of the helicopters and soldiers to antidrug operations, restricting Colombia's armed forces from using some of its best equipment and troops to fight the rebels. The policy shift, coming at a time of escalating guerrilla violence, represents a significant intensification of United States involvement in the long and intractable conflict in this country. This week the rebels launched a mortar attack here in the capital during Mr. Uribe's inauguration. The redirection of aid came after Colombian officials and their American supporters in Congress and the Bush administration argued that the change was part of the global campaign against terrorism. American troops will continue to be barred from participating in Colombia's 38-year-old conflict, but the package includes $6 million for an oil pipeline protection program that will involve the training of a new Colombian Army unit by American soldiers. The pipeline, which is crucial to Colombia's economy, is frequently bombed by rebels. The legislation, part of a broad $28.9 billion supplemental package, says that military aid already provided to Colombia "shall be available" against "activities by organizations designated as terrorist organizations" by the State Department. Those organizations are identified as the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, the country's largest guerrilla group; the National Liberation Army, a smaller left-wing insurgency; and the nemesis of both, the right-wing United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia, which is financed by landowners to battle the rebels. All three groups have drawn much of their financing from protecting or participating in the drug trade. Officials in Washington said the new guidelines take into account the reality that drugs and terrorism are combined in Colombia. "There has been a mistake in trying to identify those who are in drugs and those that are not," said John Walters, the White House drug policy chief. A State Department official said the legislation "removes an ambiguity in the law." He explained that under previous guidelines American-trained troops using American helicopters could not attack a guerrilla column or stop a rebel attack. "That has all changed." Now they can go after guerrillas, he said, although the equipment and troops will still be used against drugs. "The equipment is now available for both," he said. American congressional aides familiar with the legislation said the authorization goes into effect immediately. But there are requirements for Mr. Uribe, a technocrat who won election in May by promising to bring order to Colombia. Under the terms, which the government has accepted, it must devote more money to the army while establishing comprehensive policies to combat drugs, bring government authority to rural areas and ensure respect for human rights. Colombian officials say the change greatly enhances the army's combat capability. Most of the benefits come from 53 helicopters, 14 of them high-tech Black Hawks, that Colombia's army has received as part of the $1.1 billion Plan Colombia aid package Washington approved in 2000. Another 19 helicopters, all of them Huey II's, will arrive by mid-fall. The guidelines also mean that Colombia will be able to use a 3,000-man counterdrug brigade trained by American Special Forces directly against the rebels. The brigade has, until now, focused on securing dangerous, drug-controlled regions to allow crop dusters to fumigate without being attacked by rebel forces. "It will give us more mobility, much more capacity, much more firepower," Francisco Santos, Mr. Uribe's vice president, said in an interview this week. " It helps to change the military balance, and it helps to contain the violent ones." Bush administration officials emphasize that the equipment and American-trained troops will still primarily be used for counterdrug operations. Congress will decide if $500 million in military and police aid being proposed in 2003 can also be used directly against the rebels. Since 1999, the United States has provided Colombia with $1.7 billion in military aid, making this nation the third-largest recipient of American assistance. The shift in policy has concerned human rights groups and some members of Congress, who say escalating violence may become a byproduct of the redirected aid. But it became clear through spring and early summer that a growing number of lawmakers on Capitol Hill had sided with the Bush administration's call for a shift in tactics for two fundamental reasons. The antidrug fight here has not worked as planned, with coca plantings continuing to rise, and there was a general feeling that something drastic needed to be done to help Colombia battle the surging rebels. Senator Patrick J. Leahy, the chairman of the foreign operations subcommittee and a Vermont Democrat who has criticized American policy toward Colombia, said he supported the legislation because the new policy called for the aid to also be directed against the paramilitaries and requires that human rights conditions be met by Colombian units that use the assistance. "It is what the majority of Congress is willing to support," he said. - --- MAP posted-by: Keith Brilhart