id: 147556 date: 3/27/2008 22:45 refid: 08BOGOTA1145 origin: Embassy Bogota classification: CONFIDENTIAL destination: header: VZCZCXYZ0002 OO RUEHWEB DE RUEHBO #1145/01 0872245 ZNY CCCCC ZZH O 272245Z MAR 08 FM AMEMBASSY BOGOTA TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 2092 INFO RHMFISS/CDR USSOUTHCOM MIAMI FL IMMEDIATE RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC IMMEDIATE RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC IMMEDIATE RHMFIUU/FBI WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE RUEAWJA/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHDC IMMEDIATE RHEFDIA/DIA WASHDC IMMEDIATE RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC IMMEDIATE RUEHBR/AMEMBASSY BRASILIA PRIORITY 8116 RUEHCV/AMEMBASSY CARACAS PRIORITY 0162 RUEHPE/AMEMBASSY LIMA PRIORITY 6037 RUEHMD/AMEMBASSY MADRID PRIORITY 0165 RUEHZP/AMEMBASSY PANAMA PRIORITY 1431 RUEHQT/AMEMBASSY QUITO PRIORITY 6691 ----------------- header ends ---------------- C O N F I D E N T I A L BOGOTA 001145 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/27/2018 TAGS: PTER, PREF, PREL, PHUM, MOPS, VZ, EC, CO SUBJECT: (C) COLOMBIA'S STRATEGY TO EXPLOIT INFO FROM FARC ON VENEZUELA AND ECUADOR Classified By: Ambassador William R. Brownfield Reasons 1.4 (b and d) SUMMARY ------- 1. (C) Defense Minister Santos and Vice Minister of Defense (VMOD) Jaramillo told the Ambassador the GOC plans to selectively leak information from FARC computers connecting Presidents Chavez and Correa and their Governments to the FARC over the next 4-6 weeks, as INTERPOL completes its verification procedures. Once verified, the GOC wants INTERPOL or another respected international organization to publish the materials on a web site. The GOC plans to provide 90 documents to Venezuela and 30 to Ecuador from the Reyes materials as early as March 27, but will not provide full sets now. The GOC provided us with full sets of the hard drives, but Santos told us they were doing so on the condition that we not release any information without first consulting with the GOC. End summary. GOC STRATEGY FOR REYES INFORMATION ---------------------------------- 2. (C) Minister of Defense Juan Manuel Santos told the Ambassador generally, and VMOD Sergio Jaramillo more specifically March 18, that the GOC plans to use materials seized from Raul Reyes' FARC computers to link Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa, and their Governments to the terrorist group. Jaramillo has been designated by the GOC to develop the computer exploitation strategy. He emphasized on March 26 that the strategy is not yet complete, but 95 percent of its outline is clear. The GOC would wait to dump the data onto a public web site until INTERPOL verifies the integrity of the computers and no tampering with the information therein, a process expected to be completed by late-April. 3. (C) In the 4-6 week interim, the GOC plans to selectively provide intelligence from the computers to carefully chosen North American, Colombian, Spanish, and Latin media tied to specific themes. Jaramillo thought the most logical themes were: the FARC and President Chavez, the FARC and President Correa, the FARC and drug trafficking, and the FARC and hostages. The GOC would carefully review all material before release to filter material that could be damaging to the GOC. 4. (C) Once INTERPOL completes its review, the GOC intends to turn over the Reyes computer materials to an independent organization not identified with either the GOC or USG for release on a public internet web site. The GOC would prefer that INTERPOL, the OAS, or another respected international organization manage the site, but Jaramillo suspected INTERPOL and the OAS would be unwilling to host the information, and that an NGO will end up with the task. SHARING WITH GOV/GOE -------------------- 5. (C) Santos said the GOC would provide approximately ninety documents from the Reyes computers to Venezuela and thirty documents to Ecuador on March 27, but would not provide them with full sets of information prior to completion of the INTERPOL review. GOC SHARES INFO WITH USG--WITH A CONDITION ------------------------------------------ 6. (C) Santos promised us full sets of the hard drives (subsequently provided), but emphasized to the Ambassador that the GOC was providing the materials on the condition that the USG not/not release any information publicly or for attribution without prior consultation and agreement with the GOC. BROWNFIELD