Ecuador-Colombia Summit Confirmed
President of Ecuador Alfredo Palacio will meet on Monday in Bogota with his Colombian counterpart Alvaro Uribe to try unify stands in negotiations for a free trade agreement with the US, an official source confirmed.

Ecuadorian Foreign Minister Francisco Carrion said the parties aim at getting more flexibility from the US.

FTA-related actions will be coordinated as well as information and strategies shared at the gathering.

That will be attended by Carrion and ministers of Foreign Trade, Jorge Illingworth, and Agriculture, Pablo Rizzo, as well as main negotiator of the treaty Manuel Chirinoga.

Carrion stressed that Ecuador maintains stands of "justice and defense" of agriculture and intellectual property, so it expects more flexibility from Washington.

A trip by both presidents to the US has not been ruled out as, in case negotiations scheduled for Feb get complicated, they are expected to meet with President George W. Bush.

Regarding the presence of guerrillas of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) in Ecuadorian territory, Carrion said the Foreign Ministry acts after being officially notified by the Ministry of Defense.

He ratified that on Jan 11 four alleged FARC members were detained in border areas and sent back to Colombia.

Ecuador´s Armed Forces control the area stretching to the limit of the border line with Colombia.