Powell visits Colombia, expresses U.S. support for war on drugs

BOGOTA, Colombia -- With significant support from the United States, Colombia may have turned a corner in its efforts to eradicate coca in the country's principal growing region, U.S. officials said.

To reinforce that message with Colombia's president, Alvaro Uribe, Secretary of State Colin Powell arrived Tuesday night in Bogota, where he planned talks with Uribe about the counterdrug campaign and other issues.

Powell arrived at a military airport in Bogota amid heavy security. Two military helicopters circled over the city, while more than 50 motorcycle police officers and hundreds of soldiers were deployed to guard the route to his hotel.

In a predeparture interview with a Colombian newspaper, Powell said he sees the visit as a show of support for Uribe in his efforts to fight "those terrorist elements within Colombian society who are trying to destroy the dream of the Colombian people to have a democracy that gives them a society that is safe."

Besides drug trafficking, Uribe faces a host of problems, including a long-running civil war, but, as American officials see it, the country appears to be headed in the right direction. In contrast, the situation is worsening in Latin America's other troubled countries.