US Military Ring Around Colombia

[Ricardo Ramirez]

Venezuelan officials say the Pentagon wants to enlist them in a plan for ringing Colombia with U.S.-run listening posts. The purported reason would be to contain Colombia's expanding leftist guerrilla armies and drug traffickers from infiltrating into neighboring countries. The Venezuelans rebuffed the original proposal from the U.S. Southern Command in March but President Hugo Chavez is considering a scaled-back arrangement.  The Venezuelan outpost reportedly would join similar U.S.-supported facilities in Ecuador, Peru and Panama.   Posdata: En adicion a escopetas, ahora podrian existir 'ojos' y 'orejas.'   Mmmm...