The Fourth Fleet of the Navy of the United States complete the encirclement of South America
Colombia: U.S. Trojan Horse
Latest News (Benytsa González) / Aporrea / insurgents
writer Account Virgil in the Aeneid that the Greek Odysseus, after many years of wanting to dominate Troy, devised to build a huge wooden horse inside which hid a large number of soldiers. Then introduced him to the legendary city, as a gift, to control and destroy.
Today, the U.S. introduced in South America, in aid, troops, weapons and equipment of high technology, mobility and reach across their bases in Colombia. And, for the Brazilian analyst Luis Moniz Bandeira, Colombia is Washington's Trojan horse in the region.
And that beyond Colombia's sovereign decision to "allow access" to the U.S. to use military bases on its territory, as an extension of the bilateral agreements between nations to combat drug trafficking and terrorism, Washington's imperialist power and its growing energy needs, the abundance natural resources and raw materials in South America and the activation of the Fourth Fleet of the U.S. Army War in the Pacific and Atlantic, arouse suspicion and fear in the region.
Chalmers Johnson, professor at the University of California, said the Pentagon as the largest landowner in the world. "At one time you could establish the extent of imperialism by counting the colonies. The U.S. version of the colony is the military base today. "
For Johnson, the U.S. military deployment in the world, rather than serve his defense, has the sole purpose provide hegemony, ie, control over the largest number of countries on the planet.
enemy: drug trafficking? United States and Colombia have argued that the military activities of the bases will be limited to combating drug trafficking and terrorism within Colombia and Bogota will be under control.
However, Moniz Bandeira said that although nominally under control bases Colombian Americans, the handle and use as they wish.
Furthermore, "operating agreement explicitly stating that its use is not prohibited for other types of organizations from the Department of Defense United States, he added.
Moreover, the U.S. Comptroller General (GAO), the International Center for National Policy (CIP) and the Washington Office on Latin America (Wola) agree on pointing out the failure of Plan Colombia the fight against drug trafficking, despite more than six billion dollars spent for this purpose.
Y, Brazilian Foreign Minister Celso Amorin, left in the inkwell a question: If President Alvaro Uribe says FARC are annihilated How justifies the increased U.S. military presence? Some experts say that the objective of the bases are not guerrillas or drug trafficking, but the control of South America and on routes to Africa.
John Lindsay Poland, co-director of the Company Reconciliation Force for Latin America and the Caribbean states that the military budget document more recent State Department and the Colombian government defines the scope of the bases beyond combating drug trafficking and terrorism.
"Pentagon seeks sites for logistics and training, contingency operations and plans to deploy cargo aircraft C-17 not used for counter-drug air base in Palanquero "he says, adding that" it is incredible that the U.S. military activities will be restricted to the Colombian territory. "
regard a report by the Southern Command, cited by some analysts, indicates that "almost half the continent can be covered by a C-17 without refueling" from Palanquero, but with enough power " could cover the entire continent, except the region of Cape Horn (Chile).
to Moniz, the bases Colombia and the Fourth Fleet of the Navy will allow America to expand its presence, to ensure the control of natural resources and fencing to South America.
The region holds the largest reserves of precious natural resources: the Guarani Aquifer border (37 cubic km of water), which runs through Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay Venezuela's oil, with oil reserves of 76 billion barrels, and newfound energy wealth in Brazil, which can raise their reserves to 17 billion barrels, gas in Bolivia and the Brazilian Amazon, among others.
All are riches that could "extend the life of the empire weakened," the Uruguayan journalist Raul Zibechi.
In the words of Moniz Bandeira: "The only country that can be a threat is the U.S., because it is a power and natural resource needs."
Palanqueros
Track
U.S. forces offers 3500 meters of length for takeoff and landing of aircraft C-17
Hangars
In a modern structure, the base has room for 100 aircraft.
capacity
feature a citadel for more than two thousand people, casinos, restaurants, supermarkets and a radar system.
Budget
United States will invest $ 46 million in the empowerment of the base.
BASES WILL NOT JUSTICE
In a text released by the Co-Director of the Company Reconciliation Force for Latin America and the Caribbean (FOR), John Lindsay-Poland, says that the greatest number of killings of civilians each year in Colombia is not the work of the guerrillas, but the army and paramilitary groups, as reported by Jesuit Centre for Research and Education of the People (Cinep).
Poland states that a majority of five thousand million internally displaced persons "were expelled from their homes by paramilitary violence forced dispossession of almost 4.5 million hectares of land.
Most U.S. military presence will not help to the return of these lands to their rightful owners, nor will the Colombian military accountable for the more than 1,700 civilian deaths occurred since 2002. "
also notes that problems such as human rights violations that threaten democracy and security of the Colombian people will be part of the U.S. mission.
