Ecuador and Colombia

QUITO, Ecuador, January 11, 2007

Ecuador and Colombia 'reach deal'

Mr. Correa and Mr. Uribe met in Nicaragua. Ecuador says Taxi Heathrow Airport it has reached a deal with Colombia over the aerial fumigation of coca crops along the border, putting an end to a diplomatic crisis.

Ecuador's President-elect Rafael Correa said Colombia had agreed to give notice of any spraying in the border area. A team of experts from the Organization of American States (OAS) is due to study the health impact of glyphosate.

 Mr Correa met Colombian President Alvaro Uribe at Daniel Ortega's inauguration in Nicaragua. The agreement came a day after Ecuador took its case against Colombia to the OAS. Ecuador's Foreign Minister Francisco Carrión has described the aerial fumigation programme as a hostile act. The Ecuadorians argue that Colombia's spraying destroys crops and poses serious health risks on their side of the border.

Colombia says the programme is vital to combat illegal coca production and it is targeting plantations controlled by drug traffickers and the left-wing rebels. Colombia remains the world's largest producer of cocaine, although its share has dropped to 54% from 74% in 2000. Its drug-eradication programme is supported by the US.