BUSH TOUTS URIBE'S PROGRESS IN DRUG WAR

BOGOTA, COLOMBIA -- Saying he's proud to call Colombia's
scandal-weakened leader his friend, President Bush pledged Sunday to
press for more aid to help the him fight drug traffickers and
guerrillas and secure a trade accord for the South American nation.

But even though Bush received a warm welcome from President Alvaro
Uribe, the Bush administration's closest ally in Latin America, he
stayed in Bogota just seven hours because of security concerns.

On the streets of the capital, anti-Bush protesters clashed with riot
police, looted banks and set fires, but they were kept well away from
the presidential palace where the leaders conferred.

Bush issued a rousing endorsement of Uribe and his government, which
has been battered in recent months by allegations that political
allies of the president collaborated with cocaine-and-death-dealing
paramilitary militias.

Colombia receives about $700 million a year in U.S. aid, the highest
amount of American assistance for any nation outside the Middle East.
Bush said Sunday that the aid must continue flowing to help Uribe
keep up the fight against drug traffickers and rebels.

"I appreciate your steadfast strength," Bush said to Uribe directly,
adding that "I'm proud to call you a personal friend."

The stopover in Bogota was the third leg of Bush's weeklong,
five-country tour of Latin America.

In a region dominated by leftist governments, the conservative Uribe
has long been regarded as Washington's golden boy. During his five
years in office, the Colombian army has pushed the guerrillas out of
many parts of the country, the number of kidnappings have dropped,
and 31,000 right-wing paramilitary gunmen disarmed.

But the so-called para-politics scandal now threatens to overshadow
such gains. So far, eight pro-government congressmen as well as
Uribe's hand-picked intelligence chief have been jailed.

Adding to Uribe's problems, the Democrats now control the U.S.
Congress and they have been far more willing to criticize the
Colombian president than the Republicans.

As a result, the fate of a trade accord signed by the two nations in
November is in doubt. In addition, many Democrats have expressed
concern about human rights violations and about the lack of progress
in the drug war.

"Forgive us if we want to see more results," Rep. James McGovern,
D-Mass., said last week during a trip to Bogota.

At the news conference Sunday, Uribe stood his ground. He said his
administration has done more than any other Colombian government to
investigate and prosecute paramilitary warlords and said guilty
politicians would be punished.

Bush rose to Uribe's defense. "I appreciate the president's
determination to bring human rights violators to justice," the
president said. "It's going to be very important for the U.S.
Congress to see that determination, and I believe, given a fair
chance, President Uribe can make that case."

Bush was asked whether the Colombian government should attempt to
rescue three American defense contractors kidnapped by guerrillas
four years ago or arrange for a prisoner exchange with the rebels.
The president replied that he trusted Uribe to make the right call.

"I'm concerned about their safety," Bush said. "These are three
innocent folks held hostage for too long. The kidnappers ought to
show some heart."

After the news conference, Bush talked to members of the
Afro-Colombian community at a round table about human rights and
development. Then he went into a courtyard at the presidential palace
to meet vendors selling so-called alternative products produced to
replace coca crops, used to make cocaine.

At the end of the visit, two motorcades left for the airport. One
carried the president and Mrs. Bush; the other was a decoy.