The Americas | Colombia and its neighbours

In the firing line

Ecuador is going along with the United States’ plans for Colombia, but is worried about the side-effects. The second report in a short series

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SINCE the 1970s, the town of Lago Agrio, in Ecuador's jungle region, has been the centre of the country's oil industry. But for the past decade, the bustling town of 25,000 just 18 miles (29 kilometres) south of Ecuador's border with Colombia has had another source of income. The guerrillas of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) use the place to buy supplies, or to unwind in its bars and brothels adorned with painted images of Che Guevara.

This article appeared in the The Americas section of the print edition under the headline “In the firing line”

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