Ecadorean President Rafael Correa said that if Juan Manuel Santos wins Colombia’s upcoming presidential election, it “will be a problem,” for bilateral relations between the neighboring countries, reports El Espectador.
Correa said that a Santos victory would be difficult for Ecuador as the Partidad de la U candidate is currently being investigated for his involvement in Colombia’s March 2008 raid on a FARC camp on Ecuadorean soil.
“Of course it will be a problem. I do not want to meddle in Colombian elections, but it is undeniably going to be a problem,” the president said.
However, Correa said that he wanted to make it clear that “Ecuador has a separation of powers.”
“I have nothing to do with justice; [the Ecuadorean] justice [system] acts on its own, but I agree with the investigation into the crime,” he stated.
Juan Manuel Santos and several Colombian military officers have been indicted in absentia by Ecuadorean courts on charges of masterminding the attack, which Ecuador views as a violation of international law
Correa also justified Ecuador’s recent increased military spending, saying that the “civil war in Colombia was tremendously affecting Ecuador.”
“What can we do if we live next to a country with tremendous conflicts affecting the region,” said the Ecuador leader.
On Tuesday Colombian President Alvaro Uribe reiterated his support for Juan Manuel Santos, promising the presidential candidate “solidarity” and “protection” from the charges brought against him.