16 August 1999 U.S. Stands Ready To Support Colombian Counternarcotics Efforts (Pickering briefing on his visit to Colombia, Venezuela) (470) By Jane Morse USIA Diplomatic Correspondent Washington -- The United States is willing to support Colombia in its fight against illegal narcotics, if Colombian President Andres Pastrana can come up with a comprehensive strategy to do so, says Under Secretary for Political Affairs Thomas Pickering. At a briefing August 16 at the State Department, Pickering discussed with reporters his August 9-12 trip to Colombia and Venezuela where he met with Pastrana and Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez Frias. Colombia produces the bulk of cocaine that reaches the United States, and its problems with narcotics trafficking is spilling over into neighboring countries, including Venezuela. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, Pickering noted, is espousing a regional approach to fighting the problem. Pickering said his discussions with officials in both countries left him "sobered, but certainly not panicked" by the challenges they face. Pastrana, who is battling a rebel movement that is funded by narcotics production and trafficking, "is showing real toughness" by refusing to resume peace talks with the guerillas until they allow international monitors to work in the agreed-upon demilitarized zone in Colombia, Pickering said. The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), which was founded as a pro-Soviet, Marxist guerrilla force, has not increased beyond its 20,000 members, Pickering said, and Colombia is not in danger of being taken over by the guerillas. Pickering stressed that there are no plans for the U.S. to inject troops in Colombia or anywhere else in the region to fight narcotics, nor are there plans for a multilateral military response. But Colombia needs a comprehensive national strategy to deal with its problems, Pickering said, and Pastrana has promised to develop one soon. While the United States stands ready to help Colombia in its struggle to control illegal narcotics, "we would be relying on the Colombians to take the lead," Pickering said. The United States is training a 950-man Colombian counternarcotics military battalion, Pickering said. But each participant is being carefully vetted for compliance to international human rights standards, he said. The battalion will begin operations sometime in December. Pickering noted that South American countries are increasingly interested in taking a regional approach to narcotics controls. "The United State is willing to help in the region, and to help to be a catalyst for bringing the region together," Pickering said, but he emphasized that the United States has no regional plan of its own. Nonetheless, the United States has strong interests in the region and is willing to support contributions each country chooses to make in controlling the spread of illegal narcotics, Pickering said. He added that any U.S. financial support to a regional effort would depend on the accessed viability of the plans proposed. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Return to Washington File home page