Cebrapaz repudiates the US military presence in Latin America, São Paulo, August 3rd 2009

Cebrapaz repudiates the US military presence in Latin America

Cebrapaz repudiates the US military presence in Latin America
The Brazilian Centre of Solidarity to the Peoples and Struggle for Peace (Cebrapaz), a Brazilian social movement that is in charge of the WPC – World Peace Council Presidency, makes public its repudiation to the newest military wage in South America – through the military agreement between USA and Colombia.
The US’s utilization of the military bases of Palanquero, Apiay, Malambo, Cartagena and Malaga located in Colombian territory constitutes a serious menace to security and peace in our region. These new bases aim transform Colombia in a US tactical operational center in Latin America.
The agreement signed for ten years long will allow US to have 1.400 men in Colombia, among civil and military ones and will have an investment about US$ 5 billion. Today, Colombia is the fifth country in the score of the biggest countries with those the USA has military cooperation, behind only Israel, Iraq, Egypt and Afghanistan.
We emphasize that as the influence US policy in the region decreases, the Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) of that country, directed to Latin America and the Caribbean, increasingly expands its presence on the continent, either through the installation of military bases and radar or initiatives to scale even greater, as the recent reactivation of the Fourth Fleet of the US navy.

These new bases complete the formation of a real military belt around the border with Brazil. Among their real goals are to intimidate the political processes of change that are underway, and gain strategic position in a region with vast natural wealth.
Cebrapaz welcomes the initiative of President Luis Inacio Lula da Silva and Michelle Bachellet to call for the next day on August 10 the Council of South American Defense to address the issue.
We calls on all progressive and national forces and social movements to be alert to this new military escalation of US imperialism in our region
According to the resolution of the 2nd National Assembly of Cebrapaz held in last July, we reinforce our struggle for the dismantling of all foreign military bases around the world, especially those that are in our continent.
We repudiate the intent of making Colombia a center of operations and tactics against the peoples and countries of the region and democratic and anti-imperialist governments. To reject the US military escalation in Colombia means defending Latin America as a region of peace.

São Paulo, August 3rd 2009, Socorro Gomes, President of CEBRAPAZ
CEBRAPAZ
Centro Brasileiro de Solidariedade aos Povos e Luta pela Paz
Sede Nacional: Rua Rego Freitas, 148, conjunto 24 - República -
CEP 01220-010 - São Paulo - Brasil
TEL. (11)3223-3469
www.cebrapaz.org.br