BARILOCHE, Argentina — Colombian President Alvaro Uribe defended his U.S. military alliance against tough criticism from other South American presidents Friday, saying the United States was alone in answering Colombia’s call for help against drug traffickers and terrorists.
“We are not playing some political game,” Uribe said after others accused him of destabilizing the continent by giving U.S. troops more maneuvering room on Colombian bases.
Uribe provided few details about the 10-year base deal, and his rivals spent much of the UNASUR group summit, broadcast live across the continent, painting the U.S. as a menace to peace and security.
Venezuela’s Hugo Chavez read from a document in which he said Pentagon planners saw Colombia’s bases as a jumping-off point for “expeditionary” forces to secure whatever might be in the U.S. strategic interest in South America.
“They’re mobilizing for war,” Chavez said.
“This greatly worries me, and I can’t accept that a U.S. document treats us like a back porch,” said Ecuador’s Rafael Correa, who proposed an urgent meeting with President Barack Obama.
Uribe said the document was merely a proposal from a group of U.S. academics that is available on the Internet.
Uribe urged his neighbors to take more responsibility in the fight against “narcoterrorists,” prompting angry retorts from Bolivia’s Evo Morales, among others.
