Ecuador's president is challenging U.S. President George W. Bush to send troops to the Andean nation's border with Colombia "or shut your mouth" aboutRafael Correa made the comments late Thursday in angry response to Bush's strong support for Colombia after it raided a rebel camp on Ecuadorean soil on March 1 — an act that Correa denounced as an attack on his country's sovereignty. "Bring your soldiers Mr. Bush," Correa said during a heated speech late Thursday. "Let it be your soldiers who die along the southern border with Colombia. We'll see if the Americans, the citizens of the United States will accept tremendous atrocity. "If not, shut your mouth and understand what is happening in Latin America."
Ecuador has repeatedly said it is the victim of a spillover of violence from Colombia's long armed conflict. Colombian officials complain that Ecuador hasn't done enough to keep rebels from hiding in its territory.