CARACAS, July – Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said Tuesday he would review ties with Colombia after Bogota agreed to host "US bases" in the country.
"Now that the Yankees want to set up four bases in Colombia… it forces us to revise our relations with Colombia," Chavez said on a state television station.
The Colombian government recently announced a deal allowing US troops to operate from Colombian military facilities.
Chavez said the deal was a "threat" to Venezuela which "opened the door to our constant attackers and those preparing fresh aggressions against us."
The deal comes after Ecuador, whose President Rafael Correa has become a close ally of Chavez, evicted the United States from a military base there, which was key to US anti-drug operations.
Relations between staunchly pro-US Colombia and Venezuela’s leftist leader have frequently been tense.
Colombia has accused Venezuela of supporting leftist FARC guerillas and the countries clashed after Colombia bombed FARC positions inside Ecuador in March 2008.
Diplomatic ties were relaunched in April this year.
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