MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Peru warns about an arms race in the Pacific

Peruvian and Chilean officials will be meeting in Santiago this Tuesday to address defence expenditure issues which are souring relations between the two Pacific neighbours.

Peruvian Foreign Secretary Manuel Rodríguez Cuadros will be discussing with Chilean Deputy Foreign Secretary Cristian Barros details of the agenda for the "two plus two" meeting (Defence and Foreign Secretaries of both countries) scheduled for the end of March when the methodology for calculating (and comparing) defence expenditure will be addressed.

Peruvian Defence Secretary Roberto Chiabra two weeks ago claimed Chile, (recently involved in weapons shopping), was forcing an arms race in the region.

"Chile is not updating its equipment, but rather updating its technology?generating a misbalance that did not exist two years ago".

This week Peruvian Prime Minister Carlos Ferrero said there was an "evident military technological misbalance" with Chile, which is forcing Peru to purchase two refurbished Italian missile frigates, "in spite of the hunger and poverty in the country". "There are certain things which can't be left undone in spite of hunger and poverty, we can't forget the basic principle of protecting our own security and interests", remarked Mr. Ferrero to the Peruvian press.

Following on Chile's recent acquisition of the former HMS Sheffield, two refurbished Dutch frigates and two brand new French-Spanish build submarines, Peru is purchasing two Luppo Class Italian frigates and thinking on another two.

Arguing that the two Italian frigates are insufficient, Mr. Ferrero emphasised it was "indisputable" that the recent Chilean incorporations "are far well above the region's average", causing "difficulties and suspicions among neighbouring countries that should not exist".

"The natural path for Chile, Bolivia, Ecuador, Colombia, Peru is not only economic integration but also political integration, sometime in the coming decades and this military technological misbalance is not constructive but disruptive", underlined Mr. Ferrero.

Chilean Defence Minister Michelle Bachelet has stated that Chile is not greatly concerned about the Peruvian press reactions because previous to the actual purchasing "I personally contacted my colleagues in neighbouring countries and briefed them extensively".