U.S., COLOMBIA SIGN MILITARY PACT

CARTAGENA, Colombia (AP) -- Convinced of the need to strengthen an armed
forces under siege by the hemisphere's most powerful insurgency, the United
States signed an accord with Colombia on Tuesday pledging more military
support.

But the modest agreement -- creating a bilateral working group to discuss
U.S. military aid options -- seemed as much a symbol of American reluctance
as enthusiasm about getting more deeply involved in Colombia's nearly
4-decade-old conflict.

The group will convene twice a year with the aim of making Colmbia's armed
forces more professional, improving human rights and fighting drug
trafficking, officials said.

U.S. Defense Secretary William Cohen, in Colombia for a meeting of regional
defense ministers, called the accord an ``important step'' that could lead
to more tangible assistance in the future.

Cohen and Rodrigo Lloreda, the Colombian defense minister, discussed U.S.
training and equipment for a 1,000-man army battalion expected to be
established by mid-1999. The unit's sole function will be to assist police
in anti-narcotics operations.

U.S. aid to Colombia's security forces is currently about $100 million a
year, most of which goes to the Colombian police and is classified as
counter-narcotics. The aid, including training, is also restricted by U.S.
law to military units with clean human rights records -- a tough
prohibition in a country with some of Latin America's most serious abuses.

Even if the United States does not provide direct aid to fight the
insurgency, said Lloreda, its counter-narcotics assistance will weaken the
rebels by attacking one of their main sources of income. The guerrillas
increasingly fund their insurgency by taxing the drug trade.

The top commander of U.S. forces in Latin America, Gen. Charles E. Wilhelm,
said Tuesday that Colombia's military was ``heading in the right
direction'' versus the rebels but still has serious problems with mobility,
intelligence and river operations.

Wilhelm said U.S.-trained units can engage with the rebels as long as they
are accompanying police in operations in areas where the guerrillas are
clearly involved in drug trafficking. While recognizing that the lines can
become blurred, officials bristle at the suggestion that the United States
is getting involved in Colombia's civil conflict.

``I am definitely not referring to counterinsurgency,'' a senior U.S.
official traveling with Cohen said at a press briefing, responding to a
reporter's question about whether any of the aid will be used against the
guerrillas. The official spoke on condition of anonymity.

Some observers are worried that U.S. military aid could send confusing
signals to the rebels, undermining President Andres Pastrana's attempts to
coax them toward peace.

But such assistance could also help the Colombian army push the guerrillas
nearer to a settlement.

Checked-by: Mike Gogulski