The Examiner

Ecuador and Colombia kiss and make up 18 months after cross-border raid

Sept 15--Ecuadorian officials said yesterday they’re ready to resume diplomatic relations with Colombia after an 18-month freeze that resulted from a Colombian cross-border raid on a Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) camp.

15 de septiembre de 2009

According to Associated Press reports, Foreign Minister Fander Falconi told reporters he will meet with his Colombian counterpart, Jaime Bermudez, early next week on the sidelines of a U.N. Assembly General meeting in New York.

"The point here is to not be too optimistic or too pessimistic," Falconi said. "We should be cautious at this moment. We are going to start a dialogue, but the two societies, the two peoples, should understand that we are not going to immediately re-establish diplomatic relations."

The cross-border raid in question was one of the Colombian government’s biggest victories against the FARC, a terrorist guerrilla group that has been killing and kidnapping Colombian civilians, government officials, and military troops for over forty years. It uncovered computers containing hundreds of documents that implicated Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez and Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa in providing assistance to the FARC.
 
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