In Latin America, weapons purchases are growing

MIAMI -- Whether it's called an arms race or a "coincidental modernization" of existing stocks, a wave of weapons purchases by Latin American nations is causing neighbors to watch each other with growing mistrust and fear.

Brazil says it must protect its newfound oil and gas riches. Venezuela says the U.S. military might attack it. Colombia is worried by Venezuela, Ecuador is watching Colombia, and Paraguay is keeping an eye on Bolivia.

There's no question that weapons sales around the region are soaring. They almost doubled in just five years, from $24 billion in 2003 to $47 billion last year, according to one report by Colombian analyst Javier Loaiza. Others put the 2008 total at $60 billion.

U.S. government officials are monitoring the deals with a level of concern but avoid the term arms race. One said he preferred to call it a "coincidental modernization of existing stocks" to reflect the absence so far of widespread tit-for-tat arms purchases.

"They're buying big-ticket items, but the data shows we're not yet at an arms race," said one top Obama administration official who monitors Latin America.

Only four countries account for 80 percent of all the arms purchases -- Brazil, Venezuela, Chile and Colombia -- and 80 percent to 85 percent of the region's military expenditures go to salaries and pensions, not weapons, added the official, who asked for anonymity to speak frankly on the issue. Michael Shifter, vice president of the Latin American Dialogue think tank in Washington, agreed there is no arms race yet but said there is cause for concern -- such as the clashes between conservative President Alvaro Uribe in Colombia and his leftist neighbors, Hugo Chavez in Venezuela and Rafael Correa in Ecuador.

"There's a tremendous amount of political tension and mistrust between governments in the region," Shifter said.

The increase of arms deals also may be a delayed result of the end, in the 1980s, of many military governments in the region, said Adam Isacson, director of the Latin American security program at the Center for International Policy in Washington.

"The defense budgets had been staying very low, and then commodity prices went through the roof so everybody started buying like crazy," Isacson said, referring to the prices of items such as Venezuelan oil, Brazilian soya and Chilean copper. Brazil leads the buying spree -- with $27 billion paid or contracted in 2008, according to the Loaiza report -- as it seeks to protect vast new oil and natural-gas deposits found offshore and increase its control of the vast Amazon.

Venezuela reportedly has been negotiating with Russia for S-300 long-range ground-to-air missiles and nearly 100 T-72 main battle tanks. Chavez also has bought Sukhoi jets and SAM-24 anti-aircraft missiles.

Chile is buying fighters and submarines, Peru is buying four frigates, and Ecuador is buying jets, frigates, helicopters and surveillance drones, according to published reports.

Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay rank among the lowest spenders on new weaponry. But just days after Bolivia announced in September that it was buying six Chinese jets, congressmen in Paraguay demanded their government reconsider its modest weapons purchasing plans.

None of the region's 10 or so lingering border disputes is considered likely to erupt into open conflict in the near future.But several Latin American presidents and other officials nevertheless insist that a very real arms race is lashing the region, eating up resources that would be better spent.

"The arms race is there. It is a reality," Uruguay President Tabare Vasquez said during a visit to Washington.