Pubdate: Thu, 07 Mar 2002
Source: Los Angeles Times (CA)
Copyright: 2002 Los Angeles Times
Contact:  http://www.latimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/248
Author: Paul Richter

U.S. MAY EXPAND AID TO COLOMBIA

Policy: Powell's Remarks Come As Congress Signals Support For A Wider Role.

WASHINGTON -- Secretary of State Colin L. Powell said Wednesday that the 
Bush administration might ask Congress to lift long-standing restrictions 
that limit U.S. military aid in Colombia to the fight against narcotics.

Powell's remarks, a shift from the administration's previous statements, 
came as Congress also showed signs of changing its view and favoring more 
extensive involvement in the violence-racked Andean nation.

Appearing before a House subcommittee, Powell said that the Colombian 
government's decision in February to break off peace talks with rebel 
groups had changed the situation and that the administration wants to do 
more to help its ally amid an intensifying civil war. "We will have to 
readjust our policies, take a hard look at what we're doing and see if 
there are not other ways we can help Colombia protect itself, short of the 
United States armed forces going in to do it," Powell said.

"It may be necessary for us to give the government of Colombia assistance 
that is outside the counter-narcotics [activity] in order that they are 
able to deal with this threat to their survival as a nation," he added.

For weeks, the Bush administration has been in the midst of an internal 
debate over whether to widen its role in the three-sided war that pits a 
weak Colombian army and growing right-wing paramilitary forces against two 
large leftist groups.

The reappraisal has come during a period of escalating violence. The rebels 
have kidnapped national political figures, hijacked an airplane and bombed 
important utility installations.

Some American officials have argued for increased assistance to help the 
Colombian government combat what they view as a terrorist threat that 
endangers the United States. Some have called for declaring the destruction 
of the rebel groups an explicit goal of U.S. policy.

But others, fearing that the four-decade war could become a Vietnam-style 
quagmire for the U.S., have argued for a more cautious approach. State 
Department officials have, until now, lined up on the side of a more 
limited role.

Just last month, Powell spoke with caution about the U.S. commitment. He 
said American officials wanted to spend additional money to help protect a 
large Colombian oil pipeline, but intended this to be done through a 
"passive," or defensive, approach.

And President Bush told reporters last week that the administration did not 
intend to move beyond the policy that strictly limited U.S. military aid to 
counter-narcotics activities.

"We are providing advice to the Colombian government as to drug 
eradication, and we will keep it that way. The law is very clear," Bush 
said at the time.

But on Wednesday, the House of Representatives passed by voice vote a 
nonbinding resolution inviting Bush to seek broader aid for Colombia.

"It is time to help the Colombian people help themselves," said Rep. Henry 
J. Hyde (R-Ill.), chairman of the House International Relations Committee 
and a longtime supporter of greater aid to the South American nation.

Some longtime critics of U.S. aid to Colombia also have indicated that 
their view of the war may be changing.

Sen. Patrick J. Leahy (D-Vt.) has said that he has an open mind about 
broader U.S. military involvement in Colombia, although he believes that 
the administration should continue to require that the Colombian government 
do all it can to uphold human rights.

The U.S. has provided Colombia with about 75 helicopters as part of its aid 
package. This year, the administration has proposed spending nearly $600 
million for counter-narcotics training and $98 million to teach a new 
Colombian army brigade to protect the oil pipeline.

However, the Pentagon has been limited to providing no more than 400 
military personnel to train the Colombian army and is barred from sending 
U.S. troops into combat.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Beth