South America’s Drift toward Unity

[marmar]

from Consortium News:


South America’s Drift toward Unity
June 7, 2013

Exclusive: Over the past decade, as the United States has focused on Middle East “terrorism,” its traditional sphere of influence in Latin America has spun further out of the U.S. orbit, with major regional countries coalescing around areas of cooperation. This pattern is deepening despite occasional political flare-ups, writes Andrés Cala.

By Andrés Cala


If you just read the recent headlines, it would seem that the “anti-imperialist” Latin American bloc, led by Venezuela, is gearing up for a new showdown with “pro-Yankee” Colombia, much like last decade’s escalation of tensions that climaxed with ominous saber-rattling.

Colombia’s President Juan Manuel Santos declared that he wanted to join the U.S.-led military alliance, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), causing Venezuela, Bolivia, Argentina and even Brazil to denounce what they saw as a threat that would undermine nascent regional bonding that promises to have profound geopolitical significance.

Even before the NATO flap, Venezuela’s President Nicolás Maduro had threatened to withdraw his country’s support for Colombia’s peace talks aimed at ending a half century of bloodshed. Those negotiations were partly orchestrated by Maduro’s mentor, the late Hugo Chávez. Why was Maduro, Chávez’s successor so upset? Because Santos had hosted a visit to Bogota by Henrique Capriles, Maduro’s nemesis and defeated presidential contender.

But these disputes are a smokescreen. Colombia cannot, even if it wanted to, join NATO, and Colombian officials have since corrected the original statement. Instead, Colombia will likely sign a cooperation agreement with NATO. Santos also will not seek to undermine Maduro nor support his ouster. And Maduro will not withdraw support from the peace process nor pursue a confrontation with Santos. .......................(more)

The complete piece is at: http://consortiumnews.com/2013/06/07/south-americas-drift-toward-unity/