BOGOTA — Like most militaries in the world, who are reacting to the Ukraine-Russia war, Colombia is facing challenges as it seeks to be part of the new world order.Primarily, they want to spend more money domestically on military hardware than abroad. The problem, of course, is that defence firms in the US, Europe and elsewhere, have the technology they need.They also have a president who is taking things in a new direction. One that could lead to trouble down the road, some say.According to a confidential source in Bogota (an officer in the navy) the mountainous South American nation also faces other problems, such as strong rivalries between the services.For example, each service — navy, army and air force — all have chosen different communication equipment, to the point that, according to one confidential source, “They can’t talk to each other … not even the Special Operations Forces."Communication is key to any operation, so this lack of commonality definitely does not help things. The rivalry extends to purchasing equipment. So much so, that if one service buys something, the other service doesn’t want it.Part of the reasoning for increased co-ordination between the services, is to be compatible with NATO.Not to defend Europe of course but in other ways, such as drug smuggling efforts, and also to facilitate training.Two things in particular stand out, rainforest survival and counter-insurgency — these two areas are where the Colombian military excels..Such expertise can be shared with NATO and other western nations.The Colombian military, which has several bases on the Pacific ocean and is planning to build another, is also the first in the world to develop an all-female Special Forces commando group.According to an intelligence source, the military said that mixing women into the ranks doesn’t work — it just ends in trouble. Instead, Colombia instituted an all-female commando group, based at a jungle training base about a 3-hours by road from Bogota.So far, it has been a huge, but secretive, success. But it has not been an easy ride — the military was hit with a major scandal that was brought to light with new president, Gustavo Petro.In April, it was discovered that Colombia's military lost millions of bullets, thousands of grenades and several missiles.Petro, a former guerilla and now right-wing populist political leader, said the disappearance of the items had come to light during inspections of military bases. He blamed it on internal corruption, saying military personnel likely sold weapons to arms traders.The discovery that many items were missing had been made during surprise visits to two military bases — Tolemaida and La Guajira.At Tolemaida, there was a shortfall of more than 808,000 bullets and nearly 10,000 fewer grenades than the inventory listed on official records..Meanwhile at La Guajira, the discrepancies included nearly 4.2 million bullets and more than 9,300 grenades. Petro also said the base had lost two Spike missiles, 37 Nimrod missiles and 550 rocket-propelled grenades.Despite the launching of an investigation into the thefts, it is no surprise where these weapons have gone. FARC (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia), the infamous Marxist–Leninist guerrilla group, has since splintered into several smaller groups, following the 2017 amnesty agreement. It is very likely that the weapons went to one or more of these groups.Colombia has suffered from decades of conflict involving government forces, left-wing guerrilla groups and right-wing paramilitary forces, in which more than 450,000 people have been killed.Colombia’s latest generation of rebels and criminals pose daunting challenges. Revenue depends on assured territorial control, which is more easily achieved through coercion of local people than by waging full-blown warfare against the state’s armed forces. As a result, armed groups now rarely seek combat with the military. Petro’s plan for achieving territorial and institutional stability, aims to offer a comprehensive and sustainable roadmap to peace, addressing the root causes of violence and inequality.But in practice, his framework for peace is incomplete, failing to understand that disarming insurgent groups and signing peace agreements is insufficient without the state’s coercive power.Under Petro’s tenure, the military has suffered reduced personnel, inadequate equipping, reduced intelligence capabilities, insufficient training, incompetent civilian leadership, and the consequences of disadvantageous agreements that heavily benefit criminal actors..The Colombian government has attempted negotiations with armed groups on at least five occasions, all of which have failed.Currently, criminal groups enjoy a safe haven in Venezuela, relative military parity or near parity, and record earnings from cocaine and other illicit activities. As a result, they have little incentive to negotiate.The cannibalization of rotary-wing aircraft for spare parts is another issue hampering Colombia's military.The UH-60 Black Hawk, once the backbone of the Colombian Army’s mobility, is decimated, with a maximum of 14 units available to cover over 1 million square kilometres.President Petro also cut off diplomatic relations with Israel, over its "genocide" in Gaza, shattering strong trade ties — among them, military.Colombia’s Kfir fighter jets are all Israeli-built.The fleet, purchased in the late 1980s, is aging and requires maintenance, which can only be carried out by an Israeli firm. Manufacturers in France, Sweden and the United States have approached Colombia’s government with replacement options, but the spending priorities of Petro’s administration are elsewhere.Colombia’s military also uses Galil rifles, which were designed in Israel and for which Colombia acquired the rights to manufacture and sell. Israel also assists the South American country with its cybersecurity needs.Against this backdrop, Petro has initiated a string of failed ceasefires with the National Liberation Army, Clan del Golfo and FARC’s dissidents.All three organizations continue to engage in child recruitment, extortion, kidnapping and drug trafficking. As a result, armed actors are growing stronger. Clan del Golfo has demonstrated territorial control in 30% of Colombia.The nation’s pivot from pursuing organized armed groups to providing humanitarian relief in regions affected by criminal activities, require strong mobilization and intelligence components.This has led to “intelligence sharing” with Venezuela, which has not gone down well in Washington. Meanwhile, cocaine production is at its peak, with records for interdiction but also staggering levels of production.— with files from BBC News
