Jerry Brito

Oh, no: Colombia has oil

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A Colombian friend recently asked me why President Bush was so eager to give all sorts of military aid to her country when its president, Alvaro Uribe, visited Washington last month. My thoughts immediately where of the drug war and tangentially about the war on terrorism in the form of counterinsurgency. But it turns out there’s more.

As AP reports, today a car bomb went off in front of a school in the Colombian town of Arauca killing two police officers and wounding 11 others, just hours before Uribe was to visit. Arauca is part of a special militarized zone declared by Uribe last month that gives the army the power to search and arrest citizens without warrants, as well as impose travel restrictions and curfews in the region. Arauca is also oil rich.

I didn’t know it, but U.S. Special Forces have been sent to the area not to help fight the drug war, but to train two army brigades to protect a pipeline that carries oil for U.S.-based Occidental Petroleum. That pipeline was bombed 170 times last year, causing losses of $520 million. It was bombed earlier this month causing it to shut down.

Colombia probably has reserves of 47 billion barrels of oil, according to government estimates. They’re seeking foreign investment to explore and exploit these resources. As Forbes notes:

The government of President Alvaro Uribe wants to improve security to lure investors to produce more oil — which is the country’s number one export-earner. But large parts of the country are controlled by Marxist rebels or far-right paramilitaries fighting a 38-year-old war which claims thousands of lives a year.

So, once more, we have to turn to Dick Cheney’s National Energy Policy report to figure out America’s foreign policy. I’ve commented on that paper before. It’s the administration’s plan for “global oil security.” My favorite line in it is, “The Gulf will be a primary focus of U.S.international energy policy, but our engagement will be global, spotlighting existing and emerging regions that will have a major impact on the global energy balance.” Would you call Colombia an emerging oil region?

I’ve always been critical of the New York Times, but lately it’s really been winning me over. Maybe we’re on the same page when it comes to American imperialism. But the point is that I found a recent article that you must read: “New Role for U.S. in Colombia: Protecting a Vital Oil Pipeline,” by Juan Forero. Among lots of interesting facts, it reports:

Colombia will never be the sole solution to America’s voracious appetite for oil. But the country is known for high-quality oil that is cheap to produce and easy to refine, and is thought to have significant potential reserves that could be rapidly exploited if the guerrillas and paramilitaries could be brought under control.

So, Colombia, good luck to you if you have oil. On the one hand, the U.S. may help you rid yourselves of the FARC. But on the other, the U.S. may help you rid yourselves of the FARC. How many Iraqis are looking forward to the U.S.’s “help” in getting rid of Saddam? Help usually comes in the form of daisy cutters and depleted uranium ordnance.

RELATED: Perhaps U.S. help will name a Latin American axis of evil composed of Cuba, Venezuela, and Brazil (now that leftist Ignacio Lula da Silva has just been elected president). Pal Deroy Murdock uncharacteristically agitates about a renewed Brazilian penchant for nuclear weapons and how that country’s new president is in cahoots with Castro and Venezuela’s Chavez.

Oct 28, 2002 | Comments