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Venezuela seeks arms edge over Colombia
By Andy Webb-Vidal in Caracas
Published: May 26 2004 0:00 / Last Updated: May 26 2004 0:00
Venezuela has embarked on a weapons procurement programme to gain the advantage in its military balance with neighbouring Colombia, edging the two countries towards an arms race.
General Jorge Garca Carneiro, Venezuela's defence minister, said on Monday he would unveil, in the next few days, an "integral national defence plan", including a strengthening of "operational capability".
But according to defence industry sources, President Hugo Chávez has in recent weeks initiated closely guarded plans to buy military equipment from suppliers in Europe and the Middle East.
Four European companies - Austria, Belgium, Switzerland and the UK - are competing in a tender for 200 armoured and tactical vehicles, in a deal estimated to be worth about $80m.
A delivery of missiles, of unspecified type, is due to be flown into Venezuela from Israel next week, according to documentation seen by the Financial Times.
Venezuela's procurement plan is taking place amid a sharp increase in tensions with Colombia over the capture earlier this month of more than 100 supposedly Colombian paramilitary fighters.
Mr Chávez, who is resisting an opposition drive to secure a recall vote on his rule, claims that the "mercenaries" were part of an "invasion" force hired by domestic opponents with links to Colombia and the US.
Opponents have dismissed the incident as a government pretext to round up dissident military officers, several of whom have been arrested in recent days.
Either way, Mr Chávez's procurement plans are likely further to unsettle relations between Venezuela's Cuban-backed government and the US-supported administration of Colombia's President Alvaro Uribe.
"Fears of a Colombian 'invasion' are unfounded and have more to do with the paranoia of the Venezuelan government," said Carlos Malamud, senior Latin America analyst at the Royal Elcano Institute in Madrid. "But to brandish the ghost of an invasion is an excellent excuse to justify a procurement process."
Mr Chávez's government is also lobbying Spain to cancel a contract, signed by former prime minister Jose María Aznar, to supply Colombia with 43 AMX-30 tanks.
The Uribe government has welcomed the Spanish offer as a politically symbolic sign that the military aid it receives to combat its domestic insurgency is not limited to the US but also comes from Europe.
However, Colombian officers say the tanks - if delivered - will be ineffective for their war on guerrillas, and will likely be deployed on Colombia's border with Venezuela, inflaming tensions.
"Armed conflict between the two countries could arise if the tank sale from Spain is not suspended," said Edis Ros, deputy head of Venezuela's legislative defence and security commission.
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By Andy Webb-Vidal in Caracas
Published: May 26 2004 0:00 / Last Updated: May 26 2004 0:00
Venezuela has embarked on a weapons procurement programme to gain the advantage in its military balance with neighbouring Colombia, edging the two countries towards an arms race.
General Jorge Garca Carneiro, Venezuela's defence minister, said on Monday he would unveil, in the next few days, an "integral national defence plan", including a strengthening of "operational capability".
But according to defence industry sources, President Hugo Chávez has in recent weeks initiated closely guarded plans to buy military equipment from suppliers in Europe and the Middle East.
Four European companies - Austria, Belgium, Switzerland and the UK - are competing in a tender for 200 armoured and tactical vehicles, in a deal estimated to be worth about $80m.
A delivery of missiles, of unspecified type, is due to be flown into Venezuela from Israel next week, according to documentation seen by the Financial Times.
Venezuela's procurement plan is taking place amid a sharp increase in tensions with Colombia over the capture earlier this month of more than 100 supposedly Colombian paramilitary fighters.
Mr Chávez, who is resisting an opposition drive to secure a recall vote on his rule, claims that the "mercenaries" were part of an "invasion" force hired by domestic opponents with links to Colombia and the US.
Opponents have dismissed the incident as a government pretext to round up dissident military officers, several of whom have been arrested in recent days.
Either way, Mr Chávez's procurement plans are likely further to unsettle relations between Venezuela's Cuban-backed government and the US-supported administration of Colombia's President Alvaro Uribe.
"Fears of a Colombian 'invasion' are unfounded and have more to do with the paranoia of the Venezuelan government," said Carlos Malamud, senior Latin America analyst at the Royal Elcano Institute in Madrid. "But to brandish the ghost of an invasion is an excellent excuse to justify a procurement process."
Mr Chávez's government is also lobbying Spain to cancel a contract, signed by former prime minister Jose María Aznar, to supply Colombia with 43 AMX-30 tanks.
The Uribe government has welcomed the Spanish offer as a politically symbolic sign that the military aid it receives to combat its domestic insurgency is not limited to the US but also comes from Europe.
However, Colombian officers say the tanks - if delivered - will be ineffective for their war on guerrillas, and will likely be deployed on Colombia's border with Venezuela, inflaming tensions.
"Armed conflict between the two countries could arise if the tank sale from Spain is not suspended," said Edis Ros, deputy head of Venezuela's legislative defence and security commission.
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