U.S. contributes to Colombia’s quiet military revolution

In August 2002, Congress approved a law to allow American military aid to Colombia to be used in a “unified campaign” against drugs and terrorism, an important expansion of the U.S. war on drugs that over time dramatically enhanced the ability of the Colombian military to combat its own obsession: the leftist rebels who had waged war on the government for 40 years.

“It was absolutely critical,” said Michael Shifter, a Colombia expert with the Inter-American Dialogue, a Washington, D.C., think tank. “It facilitated a lot of the training and intelligence for the (rescue) operation.”"*

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