I dry run to see reaction from the US predidential candidates.
He knows Bush would have no problem assisting Colombia; what he does not know is how Obama will react once many foolish FReepers “teach McCain a lesson”. So he’ll have a year to rethink this strategy knowing what to expect from the US.
A smart move by Chavez IMO, and McCain needs to jump on this immediately because Obama would just sit back and do nothing.
Derivates of the AMX-13, V-100 and Dragoon 300 are used for ambulance, vehicle recovery, artillery companion and command post roles.
ping!
I actually live and work in Colombia. Understandably this makes me a little nervous.
Perhaps we should send Obama to talk to him. /s
I have friends in South America. Mainly in Brazil, but a few in Columbia. This could spark a regional war.
I wonder if BHO still wants to have unconditional talks with Chavez.
Bring back the Munroe doctrine, no enemies in the hemisphere.
It’ll be interesting to see if they’ll die for Cocaboy.
Reality check for Hugo Chavez: The regular Colombian army is considerably larger than the Venezuelan army, although the Venezuelan army seems better armed and the Venezuelan air force, on paper, has more advanced aircraft. A close look at the terrain and supply lines, however, makes it unlikely that Venezuela can conquer much Colombian territory, much less march their troops all the way to Bogota, Colombia’s capital, which is some 200 miles, at a minimum, from the Venezuelan border. Caracas, on the other hand, is _400_ miles from the Colombian border. And those are both air miles.
Now, there is a major city that Chavez could attack and attempt to occupy that is right on the border. Cucuta, with a million people. The closest major Colombian forces are at Bucaramanga, HQ for the second division, although the 30th brigade of this division is based in Cucuta. The 30th brigade has 2 infantry and one cavalry battalion and a couple of counter-insurgency/force protection battalions. The fifth brigade at Bucaramanga could reinforce Cucuta with another 3 infantry battalions, an artillery battalion, and an engineer battalion. Bucaramanga is about 70 miles from Cucuta. In addition, the second division has a couple of special forces battalions it could use and about 8 counter-insurgency battalions in the 5th and 15th mobile brigades.
Url for 2nd division order of battle
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Segunda_division_ejercito_de_Colombia.png
Nearest mechanized Colombian forces are in Baranquilla, 257 miles northwest of Cucuta, and home to the 2nd mechanized brigade of the first division. 2nd mech brigade has 2 mechanized battalions and 1 mountain infantry battalion available to reinforce Cucuta.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Primera_division_ejercito_de_Colombia.png
So first major battle between Colombia and Venezuela is likely to be the city of Cucuta with major participation by the 2nd division of Colombia’s armed forces.
Chavez is such a drama queen. Moving whatever he has near the border is probably just a lengthy “parade” he planned to spice up his fantasies.
“This is FARCin’ war!”
Colombia's military said on Saturday troops had killed Raul Reyes, a leader of Marxist FARC rebels, during an attack on a jungle camp in Ecuador in a severe blow to Latin America's oldest guerrilla insurgency. The operation included air strikes and fighting with rebels across the frontier.
Congratulations to Uribe on the Big Get!!!
But lefties are all about peace and understanding? /sarc
There are times when I miss the Cold War. In that era, if you were an “evildoer”, and here I’ll use the loose definition of “someone willing to take from others by force”, the Soviet Union would support you, but only if you followed their direction. They didn’t like unpredictability any more than we (and perhaps less), and so we didn’t have tin-pot dictators acting unilaterally all that often. When dictators did upset the apple cart at times, their actions were always in the context of the larger arena. It was a rare day when neither we nor the Soviets had a hand in what transpired around the world.
Today the evildoers are still there, but Mother Russia isn’t there to maintain order (in their sick way). China would probably like to fill that role (and by some indications might be attempting this in small ways), but the arrangement today is probably more of a coalition than anything else. We have al-Qaeda-types clinking glasses with Iranian mullahs, who through their Prez clink glasses with El Hugo. I’m sure that Hugo and Kim Il-Sung have shared more than a few telephone conversations, and Beijing is certainly in the loop, at least to an extent. The evildoers have just as much ambition as they ever had, perhaps more now that Moscow isn’t there to keep them obedient.
With us embroiled in Iraq and Afghanistan, I’m wondering if their strategy is to strain the American war machine. How far can they stretch us before the horse’s back breaks? I’m not saying that this will happen, but I wonder if this is what they’re thinking. With a sliding economy they might be thinking that the timing is right.
Beijing won’t move on Taiwan before the Olympics, but those are only months away. Our trade with them enrichens the country, but it also makes them dependent on our patronage—until they start selling to everyone else. While we have their undivided attention, we would do well to bolster Taiwan and push missile defense tech.
I’m waiting for the next shoe to drop—maybe in the Korean Peninsula, or maybe somewhere we don’t expect. I think the evildoers have been talking to each other, and (to them) there are few conversations as worthy as “how can we get what we want without those Americans standing in our way?”
Funny, not so much as a sniff about this on CNN.
Colombia has more troops and are better trained.
Colombians have been fighting more or less since the late 40s and quite a bit in their history before that. They are probably the most competent fighting wise peoples in South America.
Venezuela has new airpower but Northern Uncle can help with that.
This would galvanize the citizenry who are already tired of the rebel groups who have become nothing more than extortion rackets
And they never were crazy about Venezuelans who think they are better anyhow since their country is a bit richer due to oil.
Colombia would be a very rugged place to fight a war....even a limited border incursion one.
I see Chavez getting his ass handed to him.
"Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has been visiting countries such as China, Iran and Russia as part of an effort to build a 'strategic alliance' of interests not beholden to the United States. He considers the United States his arch enemy.":
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5729764
From the Russian News and Information Agency:
"'I am determined to expand relations with Russia,' Chavez, known as an outspoken critic of what he calls the United States' unilateralism, told the Russian leader, adding that his determination stemmed from their shared vision of the global order.":
http://en.rian.ru/russia/20060727/51913498.html
From the Sino-Russian Joint Statement of April 23, 1997:
"The two sides [China and Russia] shall, in the spirit of partnership, strive to promote the multipolarization of the world and the establishment of a new international order."
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Central_Asia/HI29Ag01.html
Putin warns Kosovo will 'come back to knock' the West, as NATO envoy lashes out
"Moscow might be forced to use "brute military force" to maintain respect on the world scene."
The Associated Press
Published: February 22, 2008
MOSCOW: President Vladimir Putin on Friday issued a sharp warning to the West about the consequences of recognizing Kosovo's independence, saying the decision would "come back to knock them on the head."
The comments, made during an informal meeting of leaders from ex-Soviet republics, were the strongest by the Russian leader since Sunday when Kosovo made its declaration of independence from Serbia.
They followed statements made earlier Friday by Russia's envoy to NATO, who warned the alliance against overstepping its mandate in Kosovo and said Moscow might be forced to use "brute military force" to maintain respect on the world scene.
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/02/22/europe/EU-GEN-Russia-Kosovo.php
Putin will be long-serving, powerful premier
By Michael Stott Thu Feb 14, 2008
President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday he intended to become a powerful and long-serving prime minister after leaving the Kremlin but rejected suggestions he would dictate orders to his likely successor.
Putin, giving his last annual news conference before his second term ends in May, said he fully trusted the Kremlin's candidate for president, First Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, and would have no problems working with him.
Medvedev enjoys blanket coverage on state-controlled media and is widely expected to win a big poll victory next month.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080214/wl_nm/russia_putin_dc_6
Russian leader Vladimir Putin on the collapse of the [former] Soviet Union:
the 'greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the century.'
"World democratic opinion has yet to realize the alarming implications of President Vladimir Putin's State of the Union speech on April 25, 2005, in which he said that the collapse of the Soviet Union represented the 'greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the century.'
http://www.hooverdigest.org/053/beichman.html
From the Sino-Russian Joint Statement of April 23, 1997:
"The two sides [China and Russia] shall, in the spirit of partnership, strive to promote the multipolarization of the world and the establishment of a new international order."
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Central_Asia/HI29Ag01.html
Russia and China prepare for war against the United States
June 4, 2005:
"Growing ties between Moscow and Beijing in the past 18 months is an important geopolitical event that has gone practically unnoticed. China's premier, Wen Jiabao, visited Russia in September 2004. In October 2004, President Vladimir Putin visited China. During the October meeting, both China and Russia declared that Sino-Russian relations had reached "unparalleled heights". In addition to settling long-standing border issues, Moscow and Beijing agreed to hold joint military exercises in 2005. This marks the first large-scale military exercises between Russia and China since 1958.
The joint military exercises complement a rapidly growing arms trade between Moscow and Beijing. China is Russia's largest buyer of military equipment." :
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/China/GF04Ad07.html
Russia, China in first joint war games
Reuters, Aug, 2005:
"Relations between China and Russia, formerly the Soviet Union, were strained by decades of mistrust during the Cold War, but the two nuclear powers have found much common ground in recent years and the military relationship has been blossoming, Reuters points out. Both are leading members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, which in July called for U.S.-led troops to fix a date to pull out of bases in Central Asia. Russia is also a major supplier of weapons to China." :
http://tvnz.co.nz/view/page/411366/601479
Russia, China flex muscles in joint war games
Reuters: Aug 17, 2007
CHEBARKUL, Russia (Reuters) - Russia and China staged their biggest joint exercises on Friday but denied this show of military prowess could lead to the formation of a counterweight to NATO.
"Today's exercises are another step towards strengthening the relations between our countries, a step towards strengthening international peace and security, and first and foremost, the security of our peoples," Putin said.
Fighter jets swooped overhead, commandos jumped from helicopters on to rooftops and the boom of artillery shells shook the firing range in Russia's Ural mountains as two of the largest armies in the world were put through their paces.
The exercises take place against a backdrop of mounting rivalry between the West, and Russia and China for influence over Central Asia, a strategic region that has huge oil, gas and mineral resources.
Russia's growing assertiveness is also causing jitters in the West. Putin announced at the firing range that Russia was resuming Soviet-era sorties by its strategic bomber aircraft near NATO airspace.
http://in.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idINIndia-29030120070817?pageNumber=1&virtualBrandChannel=0
U.S. Navy Intercepts Russian Bombers Flying Near Ships
Monday, February 11, 2008
WASHINGTON (Associated Press) U.S. fighter planes intercepted two Russian bombers flying unusually close to an American aircraft carrier in the western Pacific during the weekend, The Associated Press has learned.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,330362,00.html
