Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa met with
visiting Organization of American States (OAS) Secretary General Jose Miguel
Insulza on Thursday to discuss its ties with Colombia.
Insulza’s visit to Ecuador is aimed at “continuing the diplomacy between
Ecuador and Colombia,” Ecuadorean Foreign Minister Fander Falconi said.
On March 1, 2008, Colombian military forces bombed a camp of the
Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) located in the Ecuadorian zone of
Angostura, without notifying Ecuador of the operation.
A diplomatic stand-off quickly ensued, with Quito expelling Bogota’s
ambassador two days later, and both sides ordering thousands of troops to their
common border.
Falconi said on Friday that he would accompany Insulza to the northern
Ecuadorian border in the province of Esmeraldas “to show him what is happening,
which is a dire situation in terms of human displacement.”
According to Falconi, the situation along the border with Colombia is
“fearful”, not only because of the displacement of Colombians to Ecuador, but
also the internal displacement of Ecuadorians, which is an even worse situation.
Falconi said among the “minimum requirements the Ecuadorian government has
made” to restore ties with Colombia are the “effective repair of all the damages
they produced” with the “indiscriminate attack.”
Ecuador also requests “an effective recognition of the humanitarian effort
it is doing in its north border area” for refugees and the displaced and demands
an “effective presence” of Colombian armed forces to police their side of the
border and to “stop involving Ecuadorean authorities with members of the FARC”
in any irregular situation along the border, Falconi said.