What is plan colombia?

Plan Colombia was the name of a United States foreign aid, military and diplomatic initiative aimed at combating Colombian drug cartels and left-wing insurgent groups in Colombia. The plan was originally conceived in 1999 by the administrations of Colombian President Andrés Pastrana and US President Bill Clinton, and signed into law by the U.S in 2000. read more

Plan Colombia has seen the United States provide approximately $8 billion worth of aid to Colombia since 2000. Over the course of three articles I will look at how (and the what extent) Plan Colombia has worked to strengthen democracy, combat the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), and in this first piece, reduce coca cultivation and trafficking. read more