VOA常速英语2008年-Ecuador Cuts Ties With Colombia After Rebel Att

By Brian Wagner
Miami
04 March 2008

Ecuador's government has cut all diplomatic ties with Colombia after a military attack on Colombian rebels inside Ecuador, which killed 21 people. In Miami, VOA's Brian Wagner reports the Colombian attack also has raised tensions with Venezuela.

Ecuador's President Rafael Correa explained his government's decision in a speech late Monday, saying he felt betrayed by Colombia's government for ordering the cross-border attack on Saturday.

Mr. Correa said his country had offered peace and solidarity¹ to Colombia in the struggle with leftist rebels of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia. But he said Colombian President Alvaro Uribe now was trying to push the conflict beyond the Colombian border., but only to negotiate the release of hostages in rebel hands.

Mr. Correa said rebels were close to agreeing to the release of 12 hostages in Ecuador, including former politician Ingrid Betancourt. He said those efforts were frustrated² by authoritarian³ powers in Bogota.

Earlier, Mr. Correa recalled his nation's ambassador from Colombia and announced plans to send military forces to the border in response to the Colombian attack.

Colombia's government has apologized for crossing into Ecuador, but said the strike was a necessary part of the decades-long military struggle with FARC rebels. Officials also said troops in the raid recovered valuable documents which detailed⁴ growing ties between rebels and the governments of Venezuela and Ecuador.

In Bogota, National Police Chief Oscar Naranjo said documents found on a computer at the camp included letters from FARC commander Raul Reyes, who was killed in the attack. He said the documents show Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez sent $300 million to the rebels, and they mention rebel involvement in cocaine⁵ trafficking and the apparent sale of 50 kilograms of uranium.

Naranjo said in one letter, rebels offer military assistance to Venezuela in the event of a U.S. attack.

 He said the letter shows the two sides are not just growing closer, but there is an armed alliance between the FARC and Venezuela's government.

Venezuelan officials rejected the claims, and said they had information about links between drug traffickers and top Colombian officials.

The Organization of American States is to hold a meeting in Washington Tuesday to discuss the situation following the Colombian military strike.

Several Latin American leaders have appealed for calm, saying any conflict could hurt the region.

1 solidarity   

n.团结；休戚相关

参考例句：

• They must preserve their solidarity.他们必须维护他们的团结。
• The solidarity among China's various nationalities is as firm as a rock.中国各族人民之间的团结坚如磐石。

2 frustrated   

adj.挫败的，失意的，泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的过去式和过去分词 )；挫败；使受挫折；令人沮丧

参考例句：

• It's very easy to get frustrated in this job. 这个工作很容易令人懊恼。
• The bad weather frustrated all our hopes of going out. 恶劣的天气破坏了我们出行的愿望。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 authoritarian   

n./adj.专制(的)，专制主义者，独裁主义者

参考例句：

• Foreign diplomats suspect him of authoritarian tendencies.各国外交官怀疑他有着独裁主义倾向。
• The authoritarian policy wasn't proved to be a success.独裁主义的政策证明并不成功。

4 detailed   

adj.详细的，详尽的，极注意细节的，完全的

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• A detailed list of our publications is available on request.我们的出版物有一份详细的目录备索。

5 cocaine   

n.可卡因，古柯碱（用作局部麻醉剂）

参考例句：

• That young man is a cocaine addict.那个年轻人吸食可卡因成瘾。
• Don't have cocaine abusively.不可滥服古柯碱。