ECUADOR: Military Spending Up 240% Since 2009; Disturbing Latin American Trend.

MIAMI HERALD/ JIM WYSS/ 
Regarding the U.S.-backed Colombia as a potential threat, its neighbors have increased military spending at an alarming rate. Peru's President Alan García chided nations for the``war hypothesis'' that robbed social programs.``The cost of maintaining military bases in South America over the last five years has been $125 billion,''Garcia said. ``With just 35 billion, we could give 10 million Latin American families drinking water, education and healthcare for the next 20 years.'' Worldwide military spending is up 49% since 2000, but in the Americas it was up 79%.

BRASIL: Embraer's Super Tucano Airplane, LatAm's Anti-drug Surveillance Choice.

LATIMES/    Latin American nations are interested in buying the retro propeller-driven Super Tucano made by Embraer for anti-drug and counterinsurgency efforts. The $10 million dollar two-seater Super Tucano's top speed is only about 350 mph but it has a 620-mile combat radius and can stay aloft for six hours, carry two heavy machine guns and 2 tons of guided bombs and rockets.

VENEZUELA: Hugo Chavez's Foreign Policy.

MIAMI HERALD/ Long Feature Recaps Chavez rule /   Even with lower oil profits, Hugo Chávez is still trying to win over the Americas, export socialism and challenge the U.S.

LATIN AMERICAN TRENDS: Indian Political Awareness And Resistence Grow.

AP/MIAMI HERALD/
Throughout Latin America, there's a new political awakening among native Indians, who have lived like second-class citizens for centuries. Indians are 10% of Latin America's half-billion residents and in the Andes and Guatemala, they are far more numerous. Improved education and communications, like the Internet and the cell phone now allow local native leaders to easily share strategies with other countries.

ECUADOR: Correa Proposes Europe Pay $3 Billion NOT To Drill In Amazon.

AP Via MIAMI HERALD/
President Rafael Correa is in London still promoting his idea that Ecuador receive $3 billion NOT to allow oil drilling in a pristine Amazon reserve, the Yasuni National Park. Germany and Spain are reportedly interested.
"This is the first time the government of a major oil-producing country has voluntarily offered to forego lucrative oil extraction in order to help combat climate change," said Dr. Matt Finer, staff scientist for Save America's Forests and author of a study on Correa's initiative.

Petroamazonas Announces New Oil Field.

LAHT/
Ecuador's Petroamazonas will develop a new field in the country’s Amazon region with a proposed capacity of 23,000 barrels per day of “semi-heavy” crude.
The Pañacocha prospect is located in Sucumbios province near the Limoncocha and Eden-Yuturi fields, which also are being developed by Petroamazonas, a unit of state-owned Petroecuador.

The Murky Ecuador/ Chevron Oil Pollution Lawsuit.

NYTIMES/
Since Chevron released secretly taped videos in a $27 billion dollar lawsuit, Ecuador and the oil company have exchanged charges, including that of espionage.

China To Build New Dam In Ecuador's Amazon.

LAHT/
The Ecuadorian government signed a contract with Chinese firm Sinohydro to build the massive Coca-Codo-Sinclaire hydroelectric dam in the Amazon region.The dam will be constructed in the Amazon province of Napo, in the east-central part of the country, and it is predicted that it will provide electricity to 75 percent of Ecuador and have a power generation capacity of 1,500 MW.
The dam is the largest investment project in Ecuador and forecast to be finished in about five years, costing an estimated $2 billion.

Ecuador's Correa Faces Opposition From The Left And Right.

THE ECONOMIST/
"After almost three years in office, Mr Correa’s relations with Ecuador’s indigenous leaders are worse still. A socialist who likes to wear Andean Indian waistcoats and who recently announced the setting up of Cuban-style “Committees for the Defence of the Revolution”, Mr Correa has long been distrusted by business groups and conservatives. But now he faces a new challenge from the left. A strike by teachers and students, whose leaders claim to be Maoists, is now in its third week. And indigenous groups, some linked to Pachakutik, this week launched what they called a “national uprising”, complete with roadblocks. At least one protester was killed in clashes with police."

Argentina, Ecuador And The IMF.

THE ECONOMIST/
"When the world economy was booming and prices for South America’s commodities were high, several left-wing governments in the region liberated themselves from what they denounced as the oppressive tutelage of the IMF, and embarked on a dash for growth powered by big increases in public spending." Today, such policies are harder to finance.

Chevron Offers Evidence of Bribery In Ecuador Lawsuit.

NYT.COM.
Chevron says that video and audio recordings obtained with bugging devices appear to implicate Ecuadoran officials and political operatives, including possibly Juan Núñez, the judge overseeing the lawsuit, and Pierina Correa, the sister of Ecuador’s president, Rafael Correa in a $27 billion lawsuit over environmental damage.

U.S. Military Will Avoid Colombia's Border Regions.

COLOMBIA REPORTS.COM.

U.S. Ambassador William Brownfield says the U.S. military will not approach Colombia's borders with Venezuela and Ecuador while fighting the production and trafficing of illicit drugs.

Both countries reject a new pact that allows the Americans to use Colombian military bases for counter narcotics operations.

Mexico's Calderon Offers To Mediate Between Colombia and Venezuela, Ecuador.

MERCOPRESS.

“We are willing to offer our mediation efforts as long as both sides are willing”, said Calderón on his two day visit to Colombia.

Ecuador's Correa Pledges To Deepen Socialist Revolution.

Mercopress.

Rafael Correa sworn in for a second term as President of Ecuador on Monday vowed to deepen his socialist “revolution”.

Ecuador Warns Colombia About Incursions.

From the LAHT.

Ecuador's President Rafael Correa warned that if Colombia carries out another cross-border attack...like it did on a FARC camp in 2008... Ecuador will respond with its military.

Colombia's Neighbors Fear New US Presence.

From the NYTimes.

Ecuador's Correa "Played the (bond) Market for Fools."

Ecuador President Rafael Correa “played the market for fools”...defaulting on over $3 billion of debt six months ago and then repurchasing the bonds at less than 40 cents on the dollar, says Aberdeen Asset Management Plc.

It is reported that Ecuador has bought back 91 percent of the defaulted bonds due in 2012 and 2030.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601086&sid=adSb2tzt_y3E

US To Establish New Colombia Air Base?

Under its new president, Ecuador refused to renew the lease for the US air base at Manta.

It now appears the US may be replacing Manta...with a new base... at Palanquero... in Colombia.

Despite denials by both parties, the US has provided $45 million in aid specifically to expand Palanquero...north of Bogota.

More in this new report from "The Global Post":

http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/colombia/090530/military-base