President Bush's trip through Latin American brought a spotlight to the region that hasn't been there for quite a while. Unfortunately, it's not clear what the result will be, other than to illuminate some long-standing problems that the US has no time to address. For example, around the same time that the President made his six-hour appearance in Colombia, Chiquita Brands International confessed that it had been paying a right-wing paramilitary group protection money to continue doing business there. Chiquita will pay $25 million in fines for giving money to the United Army of Colombia (AUC), which is one of many factions in Colombia--including its chief enemy, the Marxist FARC--that's in the narcotics business.
Also at the same time as Bush's visit, US and Colombian troops attempted a rescue of three US contractors held by the FARC. Not only has the US military mission in Colombia been trying to keep its profile low, but it also has tried to keep operational details quiet. Especially in a rescue operation, US military personnel tread a fine line between maintaining an advisory role and engaging in combat. I can't imagine that the members of the 3rd Battalion, US Army Special Forces, deployed in Colombia were thrilled to see the President answering questions about the rescue operation.
Although the headlines read something like, "Bush Backs Colombian Ally," the trip did not substantially helped Colombian President Alvaro Uribe. Running on a tougher, smarter approach to defeating the FARC, Uribe won the presidency in 2002, and has remained in a fairly strong political position ever since. His strategy more closely resembles a classic counterinsurgency campaign than what the United States is doing in Iraq, so Uribe has little to learn from his American counterpart. He does need continued support, but not of the back-slapping variety.
As is often the case when American presidents visit Latin America, the trip seems to have had more to do with US priorities than Latin American ones. Bush's visit was just more oddly-timed than most.
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