The Venezuelan government said in a statement of March 9 that it would immediately restore its diplomatic ties with Colombia. The move is seen as a positive sign signaling the easing of the diplomacy crisis between Colombia and Ecuador, Venezuela and Nicaragua.
Earlier, the 20th Rio Group Summit in the Dominican capital concluded on March 7, or last Friday, with the approval of the Santo Domingo Declaration, in which the Colombian government formerly apologized to the Ecuadorian government and people for a cross-border raid against the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), a left-wing guerilla group.
The settlement of the crisis indicates the capability of Latin American nations to resolve their contradictions and buffer conflicts within a present regional mechanism. The Rio Group, an important mechanism of political consultations and coordination by eight democratic governments in the region two decades ago, failed to play an apparent role in dealing with major regional affairs for a long period of time. During the Colombia crisis, nevertheless, the 20th Rio Group summit provided a very good platform, from which each country involved voiced its own view, and Brazil and Argentine and other major member nations made maneuvering to patch up quarrels and eventually make all relevant parties friends again.
To compare with the role of the Rio Group, the Organization of American States (OAS), as a matter of fact, did not do much to resolve the crisis. Despite an emergency meeting the OAS called and a resolution it passed, the Colombia-Ecuador confrontation remained and the parties concerned kept up deploying troops to their borders with Colombia. So its role is obviously limited in the endeavor to mediate and resolve the crisis.
the alleviation of the four-nation crisis also proves the capability of Brazil and Argentine to coordinate and resolve regional contradictions. After the outbreak of the crisis, Latin American nations, on the whole, held a negative attitude toward Colombia's cross-border military incursion while appealing to the conflicting powers to retain restraint and resolve the issue via diplomatic channels. Brazil and Argentine launched an active diplomacy to spur a peaceful settlement, and Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner promptly visited Ecuador, Venezuela and other related nations to seek solutions to the crisis.
In contrast, the attitude of the United States seemed harsh, rigid and not so constructive. At a time when the clashes were escalating, the U.S. voiced full support to Colombia's action and slammed Venezuela for its troop deployment to its border with Colombia as a provocative move. Such a statement can definitely be not said a "move to extinguish fire" or "to lower temperature". So, Ecuador's President Rafael Correa on March 8, or last Saturday, asked the Latin American nations to form a new organization of American States without the U.S. to eliminate its regional interference. In his words, presidents of quite a number of Latin American nations were slow in action as they were subjected to the U.S. pressure at a time when they voiced their concerns over the crisis.
The U.S. has been quite influential on Latin American affairs due to historical and geopolitical factors and, in recent years, however, its impact has been somewhat reduced. Its emphasis regarding Latin America affairs seems to confine to its sanctions against Cuba and its containment of Venezuela, but with not much constructive content.
There has been a diversity of actions or moves with parties concerned from the abrupt outbreak of the four-nation crisis to its relatively fast resolution. In a positive sense, it posed a test for Latin American nations to cope with conflicts within their regional mechanism as well as a building up of strength for such major nations in the region as Brazil and Argentine to mediate contradictions, coordinate relations among the relevant nations and settle issues without the infiltration of any outside forces. Such a capability is vital and crucial to them on their march along the road for the integration of Latin American nations.
By People's Daily Online
|
Comment
Tell A Friend
Print Format
Save Article