Colombia will seek the resumption of ties with Ecuador, Venezuela and Nicaragua, the country's Foreign Minister Fernando Araujo said Saturday.
The recent diplomatic dispute over its incursion into Ecuadoran territory to raid a rebel camp has damaged Colombia's relations with these countries, he said, noting that Friday's Rio Group Summit had created favorable conditions for normalizing ties.
Araujo said he had met with his Nicaraguan counterpart Samuel Santos Lopez, and Nicaragua is expected to announce steps for the re-establishment of ties next week.
Neighboring countries' joint fight against terrorism should be a significant part of regional integration, he said.
Ecuador broke off diplomatic ties with Colombia in protest against a Colombian military attack on a camp of the country's largest anti-government group, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), across the border with Ecuador last Saturday.
The cross-border move, which Ecuadoran President Rafael Correa called a violation of his country's territorial sovereignty, had sparked regional tension, with both Ecuador and Venezuela reinforcing troop deployment along their borders with Colombia.
Nicaragua, which has maritime boundary dispute with Colombia, also broke off diplomatic relations with Colombia in support of Ecuador.
Colombian President Alvaro Uribe then accused Correa and Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez of having links with FARC and refused to rule out similar across-border action in the future.
The issue was finally resolved at a Rio Group summit that concluded Friday in Santo Domingo, capital of the Dominican Republic, when the three nations signed a declaration ending the diplomatic crisis, following mediation by the the host country and other participants.
(Xinhua News Agency March 9, 2008)
