The New Nation - Internet Edition

AFP, Bogota

Colombia and Ecuador sought diplomatic help Tuesday to resolve a militarized dispute between them that has already drawn in Venezuela and a pledge of support from the United States for Bogota, its main ally in South America.

As Venezuela and Ecuador reportedly reinforced troops on their borders with Colombia, US President George W. Bush said he stood fully behind his Colombian counterpart, Alvaro Uribe, and slammed Caracas for raising tensions.

"We firmly oppose any acts of aggression that could destabilize the region," Bush said in Washington, singling out "the provocative maneuvers by the regime in Venezuela."

Ecuadoran President Rafael Correa, on a visit to Brazil to drum up regional support, said Bush's words in favor of Colombia were an unsurprising plug for an "unconditional puppet."

Both Ecuador and Colombia called for an urgent meeting of foreign ministers of the Americas by March 11 to deal with their crisis.

The initiative was demanded during an emergency session of the Organization of American States Tuesday that examined the worsening situation and the trigger behind it: a cross-border raid by Colombia into Ecuador on the weekend to kill a rebel leader.