The Argentine government has expressed its concerns over the deployement of US troops in Colombia, following an agreement between the US Barack Obama administration and the centre-right government of Álvaro Uribe in Bogotá.

"Argentina is very concerned about the presence of foreign troops in South America. For us, who have part of our territory under the occupation of a foreign power in the Malvinas Islands, this is an issue of special sensitivity," said Taiana during a lecture in Mexico City, Mexico.

The placement of US troops, which aims at improving dmoestic security policies in Colombia, could brake the balance of power in the region. The Socialist president of Venezuela, Hugo Chávez,said this weekend that his country was "preparing for war."

Taiana urged the countries in the region to resume dialogue as a way to resolve the dispute sparked by the placement of US troops in Colombia. "We are a peaceful region. We have managed to make tensions between Argentina and Chile and Argentina and Brazil disappear." Argentina, was involved in a series of disputes with Chile and Brazil which led those nations to the brink of war in the seventies, before they initiated talks toward the integration of the countries in the region started in the 80s.

The Foreign Minister said that the foreign troops in Colombia would "generate a strong impact and concerns in the region. The countries grouped under the Unasur regional organization are slated to meet this month in Bariloche, Argentina, in a way to defuse tensions.

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