Confirming the Obvious: Venezuela Aids Colombia's FARC

Simon Romero of the NYT has had a look at recently uncovered communications between FARC commanders in Colombia and top government officials in Venezuela that detail a high volume of communications between the two. From the article:

Mr. Chávez has disputed claims of his government’s collaboration with the rebels since Colombian forces raided a FARC encampment in Ecuador last year. During the raid, Colombian commandos obtained the computers of a FARC commander with encrypted e-mail messages that described a history of close ties between Mr. Chávez’s government and the rebel group, which has long crossed over into Venezuelan territory for refuge.

The newest communications, circulated among the seven members of the FARC’s secretariat, suggest that little has changed with Venezuela’s assistance since the raid. The New York Times obtained a copy of the computer material from an intelligence agency that is analyzing it.

One message from Iván Márquez, a rebel commander thought to operate largely from Venezuelan territory, describes the FARC’s plan to buy surface-to-air missiles, sniper rifles and radios in Venezuela last year.

This comes on the heels of the discovery of Venezuelan bought Swedish rocket launchers in the hands of the FARC. My hunch is that the "World's Most Interesting Man" is involved in some fashion.

What seems to be par for the course is Chavez' desire to further dig his country in by upsetting a major trading partner. From the WSJ (disclaimer: not its editorial page):

Venezuela depends on Colombia for basic goods such as dairy, meat, clothing and, more strategically, imports 300 million cubic feet of natural gas a day, twice as much as originally agreed upon.

Petroleos de Venezuela SA, the state-owned oil firm, needs natural gas for its oil reservoirs to increase pressure and boost production, and as raw material for its petrochemical industry.

The trade deficit between these countries is obscenely unbalanced, Colombia exports about $500 million worth of desperately needed goods a month while Venezuela sends only a fraction of that to its neighbor.