Venezuela Troops Reach Colombian Border
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.
CARACAS, Venezuela — President Chavez of Venezuela portrayed himself as a man of peace yesterday, even as he moved tanks and soldiers to the Colombian border in a growing crisis set off by Colombia’s weekend attack on leftist rebels hiding in Ecuadorean territory.
Most of the 9,000 soldiers mobilized by Mr. Chavez have reached the frontier and are “ready to defend the sacred sovereignty of the homeland” if necessary against Colombia’s American-supported military, the Defense Ministry said. Ecuador said it sent 3,200 soldiers to its border with Colombia on Monday.
Mr. Chavez blamed the crisis on the American “empire and its lackeys” — Colombia’s conservative government — saying they pose a constant threat of war in the region, not Venezuela or Ecuador. “We are peace. We are the path to peace,” the leftist leader said in a televised speech.
Mr. Chavez and his ally, President Correa of Ecuador, have been seeking international condemnation of Colombia for the commando raid on Ecuadorean soil that killed a key Colombian rebel leader and other guerrillas Saturday.
