Defense Department officials have favored the pact as a way to reward Colombia for its successful effort at beating back drug trafficking and the country's insurgency.Colombia has been a bright shining example of the progress of freedom in the last two decades.
At a news conference in Bogota, the Colombian capital, Gates said he met this week with James L. Jones, the White House national security advisor, to discuss an administration push for congressional ratification of the accord.
"I would hope we would be in a position to make a renewed effort to get ratification of the free trade agreement," Gates said. "It is a good deal for Colombia; it is also a good deal for the United States."
President Obama was skeptical about the agreement as a senator and during his presidential campaign, citing Colombia's record of labor crackdowns. But after meeting last year with Colombian President Alvaro Uribe, Obama said Bogota had made progress on human rights issues and ordered U.S. trade officials to move ahead on the deal.
Colombian Defense Minister Gabriel Silva said Bogota was pleased by the Obama administration's growing support for the accord.
"This agreement will help further consolidate security in Colombia," Silva said.
This isn't an American issue - this is a human rights issue. Along with Chile, Panama, Costa Rica, and Honduras - among others to the south - Colombia deserves our friendship and help. This is easy. This is right.
This will also help make up for some of the interventions we have made in the past. Treat your friends as equals and they will be your friends.
Easy win ... if we can get past our own leftists.
Oh, and if you follow the Colombia tag, you will find other reasons to get, ahem, closer to Colombia. LBG can explain further if needed.
5 comments:
Being a good neighbor is never a bad policy. Each man/woman that gets a job in Colombia is one less trying to cross the border or becoming cartel soldado.
Kaplan's book Imperial Grunts has a really good chapter on everything Columbia has accomplished. This absolutely the right move. I am interested to know how this will affect their neighbor to the North. You know the one that is ruining their own economy.
Makes my head want to explode! How many years did President Bush push for this???? And the guy in the Oval Office now was one of the stumbling blocks to rewarding Colombia for an impossible job well done. Now that HE is in charge and sees the stuff from the Big Chair, now HE is going to step in and do it (and claim credit?)
Gaaaahhhh!
I suppose better late than never, but we never should have left them twisting in the wind to begin with!
It's especially galling to me that this administration is now considering rewarding Columbia, after having fallen all over themselves to damn Honduras and exhalt Venezuela.
Columbia is a jewel in South America, and has been a good friend to the United States despite the spittle-flecked diatribes from some of our leftist citizens.
Again, this is the sort of crap a nation gets when they place emotions over common sense, and elect a leader with no executive or practical leadership experience.
Too bad we can't "like" it twice.
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