Colombia’s new military chief on rising violence in the country

Colombia has been facing a wave of violence for months in the southwest of the country, mainly in the departments of Cauca and Valle del Cauca, where rebels from the Central General Staff (EMC) They got up from the dialogue table with the government and increased their attacks against the public forces in the region.

Regarding this situation, the new commander of the Colombian military forces, Admiral Francisco Cubides, said that “they are working to achieve greater territorial control” in this area, where dissidents of the extinct Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia have extensive power.

“It is a challenge that we have and we are moving forward,” said the Admiral exclusively with the Voice of America.

“If there were no forcefulness from the military forces, they would be calm and nothing would happen. The cocaine business and all the illegal activity that is consolidated there would continue, including illegal mining. So we are working to achieve more and more territorial control,” added the admiral in reference to the public order crisis in Cauca and the Micay Canyon, a strategic region for cocaine trafficking where armed organizations such as the EMC exercise strong territorial control.

The new commander of the Military Forces, who assumed office two weeks ago after President Gustavo Petro decided to change his military leadership, also detailed about Security plans for COP16the most important summit on biodiversity in the world, to be held in Cali, Colombia next October.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

VOA: Admiral Francisco Cubides, Commander of the Colombian Military Forces, thank you for speaking to Voice of America. To begin, tell us what challenges you face?

Cubides: We have a great challenge. I was commander of the Navy for 23 months and well, with this new responsibility, first of all, it is a trust placed by the national government in one more soldier, in this case a sailor who has been working for 40 years, working with the Army, the Navy and the Air Force, and now at this level of command, new challenges are required.

VOA: What can you tell us about the operations in the Micay Canyon, where clashes with some FARC dissidents are taking place, and what is your forecast for the short and medium term? Are you optimistic or not about the resolution of this critical situation?

Cubides: Cauca has always been a difficult area and specifically in Micay We have had no State presence for over a decade. Although we entered elections, we should remember that there was an uprising that took our troops out again, and there was also the criminal presence of an organized armed group led by (Iván) Mordisco, like the EMC, which obviously carries out a permanent coercive action against the population.

What we want is to reach Plateado (Micay Canyon) with military force, but also again with a state approach, because if that community is dedicated, let’s say, to drug trafficking, a different option is required that leads them to legality in a gradual way and that obviously allows them to achieve a different model of life.

VOA: The EMC has threatened the holding of COP16. What plan is being worked on to protect the security of this event?

Cubides: We must not believe alias Iván Mordisco, it is a form of sabotage on his part to send messages of power from illegality. He cannot be compared to the State, he is illegal. So, in that sense, we are attentive to all his criminal activities.

He actually issued a statement saying that ‘he is not going to attack COP16’, so look how he equates himself and wants to send messages, but the truth is that they are actually a criminal group which is the object of all our forcefulness and we hope to advance processes so that we can reduce them and bring them to submission to the State or reach a time when they once again accept the generous hand of the government to adapt to a peace process.

VOA: What has failed in the confrontation strategy that has led to the growth of some illegal armed groups such as the Clan del Golfo, the Segunda Marquetalia, the Estado Mayor Central, among others, and their power over illicit crops?

Cubides: We are constantly monitoring how these groups are growing, not only in terms of names but also in terms of territorial expansion. It is an exercise that is carried out every six months and we are looking at it with great discipline in order to focus our most important courses of action on those areas where they have been gaining expansion.

VOA: The transnational gang Tren de Aragua is present in several cities in Colombia and continues to expand. How are you fighting this criminal group?

Cubides: They are organized armed groups and organized criminal groups that have a presence in the territory. So it is a job that we do with the police, very closely with them and also with the Attorney General’s Office.

I insist, this is a group that infiltrates the citizens and it is thanks to this police work that we have managed to detect individuals who are dedicated to or are part of this group and who are dedicated to drug trafficking, who are currently the subject of justice.

VOA: Given the current situation in Venezuela, how is Colombia protecting itself? What measures will be taken? Because according to experts, migration is likely to increase.

Cubides: There is no problem at the border. Although we are already doing some things in the context of what happened over the weekend, at least at the time, there is no problem.

The flow is the same. However, there is obviously normal surveillance at the border by the police and the military with the help of the Attorney General’s Office and Immigration to detect any situation, but there has not been any flow different from that recorded in recent months.

VOA: Finally, you talk about your challenges, but tell us about your three main objectives in this important position.

Cubides: Well, I think I already mentioned maintaining offensive operations within the framework of respect for democracy, the Constitution and the laws, to continue working so that through results, I insist, transparent and in accordance with international humanitarian law (IHL), we can increasingly affect the illegal armed groups that are creating a criminal presence in Colombia.

Another point is to continue working with countries like Panama, where there is a lot of work on the border regarding drug trafficking, migration and the work we are doing with Ecuador, Peru and Brazil, to deal especially with the issue of drug trafficking. It is work that we have been doing and it is a challenge to strengthen these operations so that with each country’s capabilities we can increasingly affect the groups.

Connect with the Voice of America! Subscribe to our channels Youtube, WhatsApp and to the newsletter. Activate notifications and follow us on Facebook, X and Instagram.