BOGOTA, (Reuters) – Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos said yesterday that a Constitutional Court suspension of a military pact with the United States would not affect anti-drug or counterinsurgency assistance in the country.
Colombia’s Constitutional Court suspended a deal on Tuesday giving U.S. troops more access to Colombian bases, sending the agreement back to Santos to seek congressional approval.
“What’s important is the cooperation is going to continue. The fight against drug runners, the fight against terrorism does not let up,” Santos told reporters. “And this decision by the court is not going to affect what we’ve been receiving from the United States.”
Santos, who took over the presidency on Aug. 7, said the government would evaluate whether to take the deal to Congress, where he has solid support.
Former President Alvaro Uribe opted not to send the pact to lawmakers.
Bogota and Washington signed the security cooperation agreement last October, giving U.S. troops more access to seven Colombian bases and consolidating Washington’s presence in the Andean nation. The deal was harshly criticized by Colombia’s leftist neighbors, Venezuela and Ecuador.
