WISE CAUTION ON COLOMBIA

President Bush made a wise decision when he rejected Colombian President
Andres Pastrana's request for the United States to take part in peace talks
with guerrilla leaders of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia
(FARC). Washington must keep the guerrillas at arm's length until it is
clear that they are genuinely interested in reaching an agreement with the
Colombian government.

It is understandable that President Pastrana would have liked U.S.
representatives to be at his side last week when foreign diplomats took
part in the opening round of the resumed peace talks. Their presence would
have signified not only backing for his government, but unconditional
support for the peace process. The FARC wanted Americans at the table
because it would give the impression that the United States recognizes the
huge area controlled by the guerrillas as a state within a state.

Secretary of State Colin Powell stated the U.S. position with the utmost
clarity when he remarked last month that "at the end of the day (the
conflict) will only be solved by a political solution. And so we encourage
President Pastrana to keep working to see if he can find a political
solution, and the United States will lend its good offices."

Many Colombians fault President Pastrana for throwing caution to the wind
in his search for peace, and fear that by conceding territory to the
guerrillas he is granting them not only an enormous strategic advantage but
also encouraging them to try to seize power by military means. The zone
controlled by the FARC and the area where the National Liberation Army
operates have both been utilized by the drug cartels, which finance both
the left-wing guerrilla armies and the right-wing paramilitary groups.

President Bush's caution signals that the United States will help once the
Colombians themselves have signed on to a viable settlement of the
37-year-old insurgency that will also lead to the eradication of the
scourge of narcotics. The most effective contribution that the United
States can make to peace in Colombia is to curtail the consumption of drugs
by Americans and cut tariffs for Colombian products.