U.S. "Pleased" with International Financial Commitment to Colombia

Plan Colombia still in its first phase, officials say

By Eric Green

Washington File Staff Writer



Washington -- The United States is "pleased" by news reports that the
international community stands ready to further help fund Colombia's
$7,500-million plan to overcome its internal problems, says State
Department official William Brownfield.


At an October 19 briefing on Colombia at the State Department's
Foreign Press Center, Brownfield, deputy assistant secretary of state
for Western Hemisphere affairs, said the United States has
"expectations" that the world community recognizes the "nature and the
gravity and the seriousness of the crisis affecting Colombia and will
make whatever financial contributions they can" to address that
crisis. Groups such as the European Union, he said, have their own
budgetary processes that "I assume are every bit as complicated in
[their] own way as ours" in securing money for foreign aid.


Brownfield said the United States looks forward to a meeting on
Colombia scheduled for October 24 in Bogota where international donors
are expected to announce additional contributions to "Plan Colombia,"
the effort formulated by Colombian President Andres Pastrana to
resolve the Andean nation's problems with drug trafficking, human
rights, threats to democracy, and economic and social development.
Brownfield and Carl Leonard from the U.S. Agency for International
Development will attend the Bogota donors' meeting on behalf of the
United States. Representatives from the European Union and Nordic
countries, as well as from Japan, Canada, several United Nations
agencies, and international financial institutions are also expected
to attend, as are officials from Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Peru and
Venezuela.


At a previous donors' meeting July 7 in Madrid, Spain, the
international community pledged $871 million for Plan Colombia. In
addition, the United States has committed about $1,000 million, which
Brownfield said accounts for a "large piece" of the security and law
enforcement component of Plan Colombia. The U.S. hope is that donors
from Europe, the Far East, and financial institutions "would feel
comfortable addressing and supporting other parts of the plan,"
involving social and economic development and humanitarian assistance,
he said.


"That is why we actually are pleased with reports that we have heard,
which do not constitute an announcement or a commitment, but a story
that has been picked up by the media as to the intentions or
expectations of some other key European donors," Brownfield said.
Those donors, he said, have their own political views of what their
aid to Colombia should emphasize, "which is their absolute right." But
from press reports that U.S. officials have seen, these donors "are
prepared to support some elements of an assistance program" to
Colombia. "We think that if this is true, it would be a very positive
signal and a very helpful step in the direction of addressing
Colombia's problems," Brownfield said. He urged his audience to treat
Plan Colombia as a "work in progress."


A second briefer, Rand Beers, the State Department's assistant
secretary of state for international narcotics and law enforcement,
reinforced that view by saying that Plan Colombia is a 3-to-5 year
program and is only in its first phase of operation. This means, he
said, that it is unrealistic to expect all financial support for the
plan to already have been committed. He said press accounts that an
aid package from the European Union falls far short of what Colombian
officials had expected does not take into account that Plan Colombia
could still be in operation for another five years. As formulated by
Pastrana, Plan Colombia could be in existence long after Pastrana
finishes his term as president, said Beers.


"So to hold to an [artificial] deadline" for aid from the European
Union is not a "realistic look at the situation," Beers said.


Beers said that as agreed to by the U.S. and Colombian governments,
the United States will purchase 14 Blackhawk helicopters for use by
the Colombian counter-narcotics brigade, principally in southern
Colombia. The first batch of those helicopters will be available by
July 1, 2001, he said. The helicopters will be supported by a full
training program to ensure that there are enough Colombian pilots to
fly the aircraft. The United States will also help provide
infrastructure, logistics, and maintenance support for the planes, he
said.


In addition to the Blackhawks, 33 Huey helicopters scheduled for
counter-narcotics operations in Colombia will be in the country by
January, he announced.


(The Washington File is a product of the Office of International
Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site:
http://usinfo.state.gov)