Passions high as Latin American presidents pull back from war

Published on Friday 7 March 2008 23:54

COLOMBIA, Ecuador and Venezuela last night agreed to resolve the international crisis that had threatened to spill over from a diplomatic row into a full-blown armed conflict.

The uneasy neighbours accepted an apology from Colombian president Alvaro Uribe for last weekend's cross-border raid in which two dozen rebels in Ecuadorean territory were killed. He also pledged not to violate another nation's sovereignty again.

The declaration by Latin American presidents also reiterates the firm commitment by members of the 20-nation Rio Group to fight threats to national stability from "irregular or criminal groups".

The meeting turned into a long passion play, with finger-jabbing lectures, angry speeches and pleas for goodwill.

The high point came when the host, Dominica's president Leonel Fernandez, urged Mr Uribe to shake hands with his antagonists to show his goodwill. Mr Uribe then marched around the table and shared stiff handshakes with Rafael Correa of Ecuador and Venezuela's Hugo Chavez.

But the appeal for harmony quickly dissolved, as Mr Correa made yet another appeal to Mr Uribe to respect their border and never again act unilaterally to send commandos into his territory to bomb another rebel camp. If such an act is justified, then no border will be safe, Mr Correa said, to perhaps the day's loudest applause.

The showdown underscored Latin America's swerve to the left in recent years – and the increasing isolation of Colombia's centre-right government, Washington's strongest ally in Latin America.

At one point, the atmosphere became so bitter that Mr Correa walked out of the seaside meeting hall. He returned after what an aide said was a toilet break to denounce Mr Uribe as a liar.

"Your insolence is doing more damage to the Ecuadorean people than your murderous bombs," Mr Correa bellowed into his microphone. "Stop trying to justify the unjustifiable!"

The United States has provided billions of dollars in military aid to Colombia and US special forces train Colombian troops, giving further ammunition to Mr Chavez, an outspoken critic of the US.