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| May 2, 2002 |
Lawmakers Wary of IRA role in Colombia
Victoria Garcia, Research Assistant, vgarcia@cdi.org
The U.S. government continues to examine the globalization of terrorism. On April 24, the House International Relations Committee held a hearing, chaired by Rep. Henry J. Hyde (R-Il), entitled "International Global Terrorism: Its links with illicit drugs as illustrated by the Irish Republican Army. (IRA) and other Groups in Colombia." While there is no evidence of the IRA being involved in any way in narcotics trafficking, the links between the IRA and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) in Colombia were explored.
The hearing brought to light evidence from August 11, 2001, when three suspected IRA members -- Neil Connolly, Martin McCauley, and James Monaghan -- were arrested at Bogotá International Airport for carrying false passports and were discovered to have traces of explosives on their belongings. The men have had formal charges brought against them for training members of the FARC in the use of explosives. A judicial proceeding -- the equivalent of a trial -- is scheduled within the next few weeks. All three men denied the charges, as did the IRA.
Two panels of witnesses contributed information to the hearing, one consisting of American government officials and the other the head of the Colombian Armed Forces. The first panel, featuring Asa Hutchinson, Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration, and Mark Wong, Department of State Deputy Coordinator for Counterterrorism, did not in any way connect the IRA to the FARC. Instead Wong and Hutchinson delivered testimonies on the situation in Colombia, the relationship between the guerillas in Colombia and drug trafficking, and how it relates to the ongoing global war on terrorism. General Fernando Tapias, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Armed Forces of Colombia, was the sole witness in the second panel, and presented factual information on the presence of suspected IRA members in Colombia. Gerry Adams, leader of Sinn Fein, was asked to be a fourth witness at the hearing. Adams declined the invitation. He did, however, submit a letter to Congress denying the allegations of IRA involvement in training the FARC. (click here and scroll down to "April 24" to see the full testimonies and opening statements for this hearing.)
According to the information presented by General Tapias, Neil Connolly, recognized as a representative of Sinn Fein in Cuba, is considered "one of the best weapons builders in the IRA." Martin McCauley was said to be the director of elections for the Sinn Fein Party in Upper Bann, Ireland, and is considered "one of the best bomb makers in the provisional IRA." The third suspect, James Monaghan, has been identified by Colombian sources as chief of engineering for the Provisional IRA. Up to fifteen suspected IRA members have been involved in the training of the FARC, but the Colombian government has only had sufficient evidence to arrest and charge Connolly, McCauley and Monaghan.
General Tapias stated that the Colombian military has seen a "fundamental change" in the type of war being waged in Colombia since mid-2001. Recently there has been a notable difference in the terror tactics used by FARC, and an increase in certain techniques that were not used as often before last summer, such as the use of car bombs or severe repeated attacks on the Colombian infrastructure.
Since June 2001, the Cano Limon oil pipeline has been attacked more times than during the entire duration of Colombia’s civil war to date. One attack alone caused the Colombian government to lose $500 million. Since January 2002, close to 400 police and military personnel have died, 320 electric towers have been damaged, over 30 bridges have been blown up, and approximately 46 car bombs have exploded in several urban areas of Colombia. The Colombian military has also noted an increase in the FARC’s ability to launch long-range missiles, a technique said to have been taught to them by the captured Irishmen.
Another terror tactic that has been attributed to the IRA is the recent use of secondary explosive devices by the FARC -- a second bomb is detonated after law enforcement has responded and a crowd gathers at the site of an initial explosion to see what has happened. Mr. Wong cautiously explained that while this is a signature technique of the IRA, "there may be other explanations, but we need to analyze and understand all of the evidence as it becomes available to us." Over 10 percent of Colombian police bomb technicians have died in the last year while attempting to dismantle these increasingly sophisticated explosives.
Several Congressmen exhaustively insisted that they wanted to see facts and did not want to hear speculation, opinions or evidence from "unnamed informants from another government," as Rep. Peter King, (R-NY) described them, about the correlation between the FARC and the IRA. Rep. William D. Delahunt (D-MA) and a few others were also disgruntled by the findings of a report that outlining the findings of a nine-month investigation by committee staff that asserts the existence of an IRA presence in Colombia. According to Rep. Delahunt the report was "replete with speculation and surmise and opinion" yet is now being accepted as the position of the committee. Lawmakers were also fearful that the hearing could affect, and even derail, the peace process in Ireland -- one of the reasons given for the delay of the official judicial hearing in Colombia.
While many assertions about the connection between the IRA and the FARC were made, no factual information was presented at the hearing that established whether or not the Irish citizens arrested in Colombia last August were sent by a high-ranking member of the IRA to train the FARC or if the men had gone to Colombia on their own. Indeed, the hearing was in some ways premature, in that Colombia’s judiciary branch and District Attorney’s office hold much of the evidence that will not be released until the trial.
It appears that Colombia is considered by many members of the committee to be a potential breeding ground for international terrorism. Due to its mounting control of illicit drug profits, the FARC has captured the attention of foreign groups including members of the Basque Fatherland and Liberty (ETA) and the IRA. According to General Tapias, FARC deserters have presented evidence that other foreigners have been involved in the training of FARC guerillas, including people from Germany, Argentina, Venezuela, Iran, and possibly Cuba and Iraq.
The grave situation in Colombia can only be aggravated by the presence of these foreigners. If the Colombian government decides that the involvement of the Irishmen is directly related to the IRA, it will not only further subvert the war in Colombia and undermine South America’s oldest democracy, but it may also negatively impact Ireland’s four-year peace process.
U.S. starts Bosnia force reductions to support Enduring Freedom
Colin Robinson, Research Assistant, crobinso@cdi.org
In early April, the United States, along with some other NATO countries, was reported to have started discussions on reducing its forces committed to peacekeeping operations in the Balkans. The United States has over 8,000 personnel in Bosnia-Herzegovina and Kosovo deployed as part of the two NATO peacekeeping operations in those countries. This follows an earlier reduction in forces between November 1999 and April 2000 that saw the S-FOR in Bosnia reduced to around 18,000 (compared to it’s predecessor, I-FOR’s original 1995 strength of 60,000).
These expected changes are to a degree part of the normal, continuing development of the two forces. Hopes remain that Balkan peacekeeping forces can eventually be reduced to a point where they can be withdrawn altogether. However, the current U.S. aversion to operations which can be labeled ‘peacekeeping’ is a factor, as well as the continuing demands of Operation Enduring Freedom, the worldwide war on terror.
The administration of President George W. Bush, mindful of President Clinton’s experience in Somalia and having a more restricted viewpoint on the commitment of U.S. forces more generally, made statements during the 2000 presidential campaign advocating a total withdrawal of U.S. forces from the Balkans. While this did not become policy, it did create a diplomatic stir. More recently peacekeeping activities in both East Timor and the Sinai have been mentioned as possible candidates for cutbacks, though without success in either case. In the framework of overall NATO reductions in Bosnia, however, the United States has an opportunity to reduce its commitments while being less likely to cause major diplomatic disagreements.
According to Jane’s Defence Weekly, USAF General Joseph Ralston, the NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe, submitted plans to NATO headquarters in late March which recommended a major rationalization of command relationships in Kosovo. He also advocated withdrawal of the heavy armor and artillery units that had initially accompanied -- the force to deter, and if necessary defeat, any re-entry into Kosovo by the Milosevic regime. The 43,000 strong force was to be cut by 5,000-10,000 personnel. Several tank and artillery battalions as well as two of the brigade headquarters that have been coordinating the peace-keeping effort, would leave. In Bosnia-Herzegovina U.S. force levels would be reduced by 12.5%.
The pressure that Operation Enduring Freedom has placed on the U.S. Army in particular can be appreciated by the experiences of one formation, the 10th Mountain Division, one of the Army’s four ‘light’ divisions. The 10th Mountain has six infantry battalions backed by artillery, engineers and other units. The military rule of thumb is that for one unit on deployment, another is needed to train for its replacement while a third is recovering from the operation. The 10th Mountain had not the theoretical two but five battalions deployed on operations in late 2001 and early 2002. Two battalions were in Kosovo, two were deploying to Afghanistan (they have since returned) and another was undertaking six weeks of peacekeeping duties in the Sinai desert with the Multinational Force and Observers (MFO). The Enduring Freedom deployment caused the return home of a battalion which had been earmarked for Bosnia-Herzegovina. During this period one official said Fort Drum, the division’s home base, "had barely enough personnel to guard the gates."
Thus the United States has decided that its light forces -- key to fighting Enduring Freedom -- are going to have to reduce their presence in the Balkans, along with its heavier units. The disinclination to conduct anything that could be perceived as a peacekeeping operation does have repercussions for future phrases of the "war on terror."
With varied Special Operations and other forces on the ground in Afghanistan conducting a wide range of activities, including what could well be termed peacekeeping, the United States risks being accused of contradictory behavior. It is also far from certain that the new Afghan National Army in which most U.S. hopes are placed can assure peace and stability across the whole of Afghanistan. What will happen if the new hope for Afghanistan fails due to the resumption of ethnic rivalry, and the U.S. is not willing to guarantee the future because of the need to send peacekeepers? Will all the past effort really go for nothing?
NATO to End Air Patrols Over U.S. Cities -- NATO will recall its five E-3A AWACS early warning and surveillance planes from the United States by May 16, the alliance's highest decision-making body, the North Atlantic Council, decided Tuesday. The move, made in consultation with U.S. defense authorities, is a part of the Pentagon's scale-back of the extensive air patrols over U.S. cities which dates back to Sept. 11. Five NATO radar planes and one support plane have flown out of Tinker Air Base in Oklahoma since Oct. 9, 2001. Their multinational crews helped monitor air traffic and coordinate U.S. combat air patrols. NATO's Standing Naval Force Mediterranean, one of the few assets (together with AWACS) at the alliance's permanent disposal, continues to operate in the Eastern Mediterranean in support of U.S. counterterrorist operations. Most NATO nations are taking part in combat or peacekeeping operations in Afghanistan under U.S. auspices but outside NATO command.
U.S. Begins Military Operations in Georgia -- A vanguard force of 20 U.S. soldiers arrived in the former Soviet republic of Georgia this week. They are the first of 150 to 200 U.S. special forces troops who will train and equip army, border and security forces in the region. The United States has approved a $64 million program to help train Georgian forces in counterterrorism operations in an effort to help the government get control over the Pankisi Gorge near Chechnya. The region on the Georgian side of the border has been a refuge for armed groups, some thought by the United States to have ties to al Qaeda.
Navy Awards DD(X) Development Contract -- The Navy has awarded the research and development contract for the next generation of surface warships to the “Gold Team” of Northrop-Grumman, Raytheon and United Defense. The four-year $2.9 billion contract will result in the construction of one vessel, while exploring a range of new technologies. The DD(X) program is a follow-on to the DD-21 program that was redesignated last November as a technology development initiative intended to spawn a number of new vessel designs, rather than a specific class of ship. The losing “Blue Team” was made up of General Dynamic’s Bath Iron Works and Lockheed Martin, although Bath also had a role in the Gold Team’s design, and will likely be involved in future development work as well as any new ship construction.
Pentagon Clears Way For New V-22 Testing -- The Defense Acquisition Board and the Pentagon’s head of acquisitions Edward C. "Pete" Aldridge have given the Navy the go-ahead to resume flight testing of the V-22 "Osprey" tilt-rotor aircraft. Flights of the V-22 were halted after the December 2000 crash which killed the crew of four, the second fatal V-22 crash in less than a year. Flight testing is expected to resume in mid-May. Mr. Aldridge, who is considered to be skeptical of tilt-rotor technology, has indicated that he will be watching the program closely, and will be willing to halt flight testing, or even terminate the program, if problems continue.
Patriot Anti-missile System One-for-two in Latest Test -- The Patriot PAC-3 missile defense system hit one of two targets during its most recent test at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico last week. The test involved the PAC-3 system trying to intercept two different types of ballistic missiles simultaneously. While one interceptor successfully hit its target missile, the other missile failed to launch.
Quotation of the Week -- "Solid partnerships are not built on winner-take-all rules; they require a search for win-win outcomes…If the [Bush] administration does not begin to find ways to restore a real sense of give and take, it may lose its chance to build the solid relationship [with Russia] to which it now aspires," Leon Fuerth, former national security advisor to vice president Al Gore, Washington Post op-ed, May 1, 2002.
This Week on SUPERPOWER: Global Affairs TV -- "The Road to Peace in the Middle East"
Sunday at 12:30 pm on MHz2 (check local listings) "SUPERPOWER: Global Affairs TV" showcases international television coverage of world events. Host Lisa Simeone along with Mark Thompson of Time Magazine and Jefferson Morley of the washingtonpost.com, discuss current events with a regular rotation of foreign journalists, as well as other guests from the foreign military and diplomatic communities in Washington.
This Week’s Episode: "The Road to Peace in the Middle East"
SUPERPOWER, together with experts from the part of the world that commands America's attention more than ever, examines the latest developments in the Middle East. Has America taken the first step toward brokering a lasting peace agreement? Does Arafat's release from his headquarters mean the Israelis and Palestinians have found common ground? How do countries in the neighboring regions perceive the conflict?
Joining Lisa Simeone will be Dr. Murhaf Jouejati of the Middle East Institute and Nathan Guttman of Ha'aretz.
Where to watch: http://www.mhznetworks.org/cable/listings.html
For more information, please send an e-mail to: info@superpowertv.org