I agreee completely. Only someone who has lived in the region can attest first hand to the claims of the Colombian government, and the threat that Hugo Chavez' militarism poses to regional stability. It's increasingly obvious the fact that Venezuela hopes to become the new communist regime in Latin America even long after the Castros are gone.

We can't be sure from this that Venezuela's relationship with FARC is truly open and dates back to 1995. It may very well be so, but far more evidence is required.

This piece is full of points that are difficult if not impossible to substantiate.

1. What sort of "active collaboration" are you referring to? Venezuela's involvement is seeking peace in the region, which is in the interest of the whole region. This author of this piece would do well to see the wisdom of involving all parties in peace negotiations, as was done in Northern Ireland.

2. Are you suggesting that Uribe leads a legitimate, democratic government? Perhaps it is, if you mean democracy to be obeying the US master and terrorizing its own citizens. Can you name a terrorist act that both his administration and FARC have not both committed?

3. That Uribe would cooperate with the governments of his neighbors doesn't pass the laugh test. His government invaded Ecuador and murdered people there without apology. He is hardly one to speak of respecting the law. Still, Chavez would have nothing to lose by allowing international inspections of Venezuela. Would Uribe consent to the same?

4. Chavez allied with the FARC since 1995? What's your proof? Ambassador Hoyos identifying FARC activity? Ambassador Hoyos has zero proof. Please rewrite this article when you find some. And accusing Venezuela of interfering with the internal affairs of other countries? That's the pot calling the kettle black.

But the truly unfortunate aspect of this article is the disregard for human suffering that Uribe seeks to spread to other countries. Colombia is the most dangerous place in the world to be a member of a labor union. Its indigenous people routinely experience chemical warfare at the behest of the US. Colombia is hardly a model of human rights.

Venezuela on the other hand has made enormous strides in respecting indigenous rights and in reducing poverty within its borders. And Chavez is hardly a strongman; when his party loses an election, it loses. Most importantly, Chavez seeks to integrate Latin America both internally and regionally, which is the first step toward independence from the US.

Mr. Reich usually comes off in the media, as the ultimate know-it-all of Latin American politics. Like all his predecessors that climbed on their soap box to pontificate what´s best for the continent, he is possessed of an encyclopedic wisdom, that unfortunately leaves the biggest gap of them all in his dialectics, the functional illiteracy of the historic memory. I have yet to see a single (U.S.) writer that mentions the ills of Colombia, which takes into serious account the events of 1948 after the death of Gaitán. In other words, the FARC and their kind, just came into existence out of the clear blue, and now we can easily blame the rising consciousness of the masses which is in itself rooted in the historic memory. Until Colombia takes responsibility for a conflict which is over 50 years old, I have to side with Venezuela´s Foreign Minister Maduro that until there´s peace in Colombia, there will be no peace in the region.

Why is he allowed to comment on Chavez? He's coming from Caracas where he stayed for a while, doing what (get it? Cuban-exile/Caracas... bomb, airplane, assassinations, plot, subplot and overplot, etc, etc, the works)? And then, himself Reich says that Chavez is paranoiac thinking that black-forces are plotting against Chavez. Hello?

But what I resent most, he is an Uribe apologist. Uribe is one of the founders of the Colombian Vigilantes that killed children, destroyed whole towns, bombed churches, robbed peasants dry, killed hundreds of journalists, terrified the press, are, they actually are, still are traficking drugs even in American military planes I've heard, have most of the Colombian politicians either in their bag or scared to death to silence and acquiescence, and even come to give speeches to the Congress of the US of America. Uribe hands cannot be dirtier or bloodier. What he does to Latin America in general, dividing it whenever he had opportunity to drag feet or to foul-speak, has no par.

And Otto Reich is going to throw a bye-bye party to Uribe. Good for them. Figure.

Many opinions here refer almost exclusively to the uribe's dictatorship, or to the author's lack of moral authority to discuss this issues, but very few addres the question about Venezuela's support to farc an eln. If Uribe's hands are bloodier, This is excuse to support violent aggrupations? Remember, Uribe was elected by the people (7 million if my memory does't fail), so, his government is legally stablished and support to farc an eln as terrorist groups is clearly an attack to Colombia as nation. I repit, I never vote for Uribe, his government has many faults and pitfalls, (some of them very very graves), but this faults someday will be judged in trial. We cannot accept that Venezuela support farc an eln, and by this way, attack to colombian people, only based in stupid arguments like Colombia's lack of responsability with our internal war. Because our armed forces are pushing strongly this groups is that they must search refuge in neighbor countries, this is obvious. Again, please excuse my bad english.