WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama committed the United States on Thursday to helping Colombia rebuild as it nears a peace deal after half a century of guerrilla conflict.
Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos arrived at the White House on the verge of a truce with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia that promises to end Latin America's longest-running armed conflict. Facing the task of reconstruction, Santos secured promises of financial help from Obama, who said the U.S. "will be your partner in waging peace."
"In short, a country that was on the brink of collapse is now on the brink of peace," Obama said, hosting Santos for a reception after an Oval Office meeting. "In Colombia today, there is hope."
Obama said he planned to ask Congress for about $450 million in U.S. assistance for Colombia in his final budget, acceding to Santos' request that the U.S. increase its aid to the country this year. He announced that the 15-year-old Plan Colombia, a $10 billion U.S. program to fight insurgency and the narcotics trade, would soon end. In its stead, Obama said the U.S. would begin a new program called Peace Colombia that aims to help reintegrate the rebels into society and expand the government's reach into blighted areas that had long been ceded to the guerrilla group.
"We all know that it's easier to start wars than to end them," Obama said. "But after half a century of wrenching conflict, the time has come for peace."
As part of Peace Colombia, the U.S. will team up with Norway in an effort aimed at ridding Colombia of land mines within five years.
Along with appeals for cash, Santos made another request while visiting the Oval Office: the removal of the rebel group from the U.S. list of terrorist groups once a deal is struck. As part of the talks, the rebel group has renounced kidnapping and declared a unilateral truce while demanding its removal from the terror list, which includes al-Qaida and the Islamic State.
Bernard Aronson, the U.S. special envoy to the talks, said the U.S. would consider removing the group once it has renounced violence, given up weapons and ceased hostile actions toward U.S. citizens and interests.
Although Congress must approve any funds that Obama requests, aid for Colombia has traditionally enjoyed bipartisan support. Of the $450 million, about $390 million would be in foreign aid, with the rest of the funds in humanitarian assistance and Pentagon counternarcotic programs.
A Section on 02/05/2016