Pubdate: Tue, 05 Aug 2003
Source: Guardian, The (UK)
Copyright: 2003 Guardian Newspapers Limited
Contact:  http://www.guardian.co.uk/guardian/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/175
Author: George Gedda, Associated Press Writer

POWELL OKS COLOMBIA ANTI-DRUG FLIGHTS

WASHINGTON (AP) - Secretary of State Colin Powell has approved a resumption 
of drug surveillance flights over Colombia after a two-year suspension, a 
U.S. official said Tuesday.

The official said the White House is expected to announce the resumption on 
Thursday, when Colombian President Alvaro Uribe observes his first 
anniversary in office.

Uribe has advocated a strong stand against drug traffickers.

The official said Powell's recommendation went out Monday night. The 
process took far longer than expected, as officials attempted to put 
safeguards in place to minimize the possibility of an incident like that 
two years ago, when a plane carrying a U.S. missionary and her child was 
mistakenly shot down.

At the time, surveillance flights were conducted over Peru and Colombia. 
They were suspended in April 2001 after a Peruvian fighter jet acting on 
U.S. intelligence shot down the missionary plane, killing Veronica Bowers 
and her daughter Charity.

U.S. government and congressional investigations said many factors 
contributed to the mistake, including a failure to follow established 
procedures, inadequate Peruvian air control and inadequate foreign language 
skills of Peruvians and Americans.

The new safeguards for flights over Colombia include clearer procedures for 
identifying and communicating with suspected planes and establishing a 
chain of command for making the decision to fire on a plane. Colombians 
would make the final decision.

White House spokesman Scott McClellan, who is with President Bush in 
Crawford, Texas, said an interagency process has helped develop procedures 
to enhance safety.

"The president's overriding concern is to support our allies in Colombia to 
address the threat to their national security posed by illegal drug 
trafficking while ensuring that procedures are in place to protect innocent 
life,'' McClellan said.

Other officials have said no agreement is expected soon to resume flights 
over Peru, which lacks radar and aircraft needed for the program.
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MAP posted-by: Larry Stevens