MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Brazil and Colombia agree to joint Amazon border surveillance

A defense agreement to share military information, technology, training, intelligence, weapons procurement and joint exercises will be signed this weekend between Brazil and Colombia when President Lula da Silva arrives for two-day talks with his counterpart Alvaro Uribe.

The initiative among other things would facilitate air and land joint surveillance of the mostly lawless 1,000 miles shared Amazon border, a transit zone and haven for drug traffickers, guerrilla groups, smugglers, mining and other illegal activities. The visit is also interpreted as a clear message of support for Colombian president Alvaro Uribe and the efforts of his elected government to end four decades of insurgency, which threatens the region. Colombia's main rebel group, Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, FARC, is known to regularly cross into Brazil to smuggle cocaine for weapons and equipment for its ongoing fight with Colombian military. Calls for regional security cooperation took on new urgency after Colombia last March first crossed into Ecuador in hot pursuit of a senior FARC commander which was killed together with several other members of the group. The attack delivered two laptops with valuable information on FARC and their network of contacts and financial support. But Venezuela's president Hugo Chavez immediately reacted in support of Ecuador by ordering troops to the border. An emergency session of the Rio Group in Dominica Republic helped to defuse the situation and Brazil pushed forward the idea of a South American Defense Council. However President Uribe refused to join, saying Colombia couldn't trust all of its neighbors. But Brazil insisted because Lula da Silva is interested in closer ties with Uribe to counter the regional influence president Chavez has gained with Venezuela's oil wealth. In this line of action Brazilian Defence Minister Nelson Jobim and the big promoter of the regional Defence Council warned on April that any FARC insurgents crossing into Brazil would be met with gunfire. Lula da Silva this weekend will be next to Uribe during the commemoration of Colombia's July 20th Independence Day in Leticia, along the Amazon border. President Alan Garcia of Peru, Colombia's closest regional ally, and with budding insurgency problems of his own, will also be around for the event. Brazil is also looking to boost arms sales and Colombia so far has proven an excellent client. Colombia in 2006 spent 240 million US dollars in the purchase of 25 Super Tucano attack planes from Embraer SA, Brazil's main aircraft manufacturer. The low flying Super Tucano planes, ideal for jungle strafing, led the bombing campaign in Ecuador.