烏力貝執政期間(2002-2010)哥倫比亞與美國政經關係之研究

Abstract

In comparison with the rise of the neo-left wing in Latin America, Alvaro Uribe, the president of (2002-2010), represented a clear-cut image of the right wingers, especially, the implementation of Plan Colombia and the Colombia-U.S. Free Trade Agreement during his tenure, highlighted the closely political and economic relations between the two countries. Drugs, guerrillas and paramilitary groups, which were generally acknowledged as the origin of the Colombian internal conflicts, formed the best excuses for the U.S. to intervene in in the fields of anti-communist, anti-drugs and anti-terrorism war. Why was the U.S. willing to inject a high amount of financial aid to assist Colombia? Why did the political and economic relations between the two countries remain so close during the Uribe’s administration? Through this thesis, we can find that the U.S. intended to safeguard the U.S. energy security and the interests of multinational corporations via the free trade pact and the Plan Colombia attempting to solve the domestic conflicts in Colombia. On the other hand, Uribe, as an independent candidate, won a first-round presidential election, and promised to crack down hard on rebel groups through the American aid; he also became the first president who was consecutively re-elected by constitution amendment in Colombia, and intended to participate in the third presidential election. However, the Plan Colombia put too much emphasis on military means to deal with drugs and guerrillas, it resulted in strained relations with the neighboring countries, and ignored economic and social programs to tackle Colombia’s complex internal problems. If Free Trade Agreement enters into force, the multinational companies or consortia will be benefited instead of the general public. Therefore, Colombian desiring peace and solving the problem of social inequality will not be easily realized in the near future. Furthermore, this study also found that the development of Colombia-U.S. political and economic relations toward the future not only depends on the United States, but also on how government seeks U.S. support, improves relations with the left-wing neighboring countries, and achieves balance in adopting the military strategy and socio-economic projects in the drug eradication.