US embassy cable - 04BOGOTA1356

C O N F I D E N T I A L BOGOTA 001356 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/10/2014 
TAGS: PREL, KJUS, PHUM, PTER, SNAR, CO, EU, Demobilization 
SUBJECT: URIBE'S MEETING WITH INTER-AGENCY DELEGATION 
 
REF: BOGOTA 1198 (NOTAL) 
 
Classified By: Ambassador William B. Wood, Reasons: 1.5 B & D. 
 
1.  (C) Summary:  Ambassador Wood and visiting U.S. 
inter-agency delegation met with President Uribe and FM Barco 
on February 4.  Reftel details the portion of the meeting 
devoted to paramilitary demobilization and extradition 
issues.  Barco expressed guarded optimism regarding the OAS 
vote on SecGen Gaviria's proposed paramilitary demobilization 
verification program.  Uribe reiterated his pledge to wipe 
out coca production during his term and requested additional 
eradication efforts and aircraft.  Uribe was positive on his 
upcoming visit to Europe, indicating he would defend the 
anti-terrorism statute and resist calls for a humanitarian 
exchange of kidnapped victims for guerrillas.  End Summary. 
 
2.  (SBU) Ambassador Wood and U.S. inter-agency delegation 
met with President Alvaro Uribe and FM Carolina Barco on 
February 4 in Bogota.  The U.S. side included WHA DAS Peter 
DeShazo, DRL PDAS Michael Kozak, INL DAS Deborah McCarthy, 
USAID Deputy Assistant Administrator Karen Harbert, and 
poloff Brian Walch (notetaker). 
 
3.  (C) DeShazo welcomed Colombian military/police re-taking 
of Miraflores from FARC guerrillas earlier in the week.  In 
the context of paramilitary demobilization (see reftel), 
Ambassador and DeShazo stressed the importance of extradition 
and the need for justice for victims and accountability for 
gross human rights violations and narcotrafficking on the 
part of former combatants.  Regarding the planned OAS 
observation effort for paramilitary demobilization, FM Barco 
indicated she was lobbying counterparts to attain approval of 
the OAS SecGen's initiative. 
 
4.  (C) Uribe reiterated his pledge to wipe out coca 
production during his term (2002-2006).  He requested 
additional eradication flights and inquired about the status 
of pending aircraft.  McCarthy noted the full-steam pace of 
eradication efforts and was positive that four additional 
aircraft would arrive in approximately 90 days.  In addition, 
the U.S. goal was two AT-802 aircraft by June.  Uribe 
suggested additional efforts to dismantle the Norte del Valle 
cartel and called attention to two major groups of arrests in 
the last ten days.  Ambassador Wood told Uribe we are in the 
final stages of the draft Plan Colombia Phase II text. 
 
5.  (C) Turning to his visit to Brussels, Berlin, Rome, and 
Strasbourg (February 8-14), Uribe indicated he would carry a 
strong message to Europe.  He promised to stress his 
achievements on both the public security and human rights 
fronts.  Uribe was adamant that he would resist European 
calls for an unconditional humanitarian exchange of prisoners 
with the FARC.  FM Barco, in turn, expressed determination to 
defend the congressionally-approved anti-terrorism statute. 
WOOD