QUITO, Ecuador, March 30 (UPI) -- Clandestine links between quasi-Marxist armed group Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia and elements in Ecuador have raised renewed concerns a week after Colombian officials declared the group's adherents might be on the run and losing their grip on the outlying rural areas.
Ecuador's Unit for Combating Organized Crime said it seized 100 boxes of dynamite concealed in a truck they suspect was heading toward a FARC stronghold. The security forces arrested three people but there was no armed confrontation during the arrests.
The security operation in the canton of Ponce Enriquez, Ecuador's Azuay province, revived fears that FARC had intensified contacts in Ecuador amid a perceived change of heart in Venezuela over the insurgent group's activities.
Colombia went on a charm offensive in Venezuela after Juan Manuel Santos took office as president in August, succeeding Alvaro Uribe. Colombia and Venezuela re-established diplomatic relations as Santos extended a welcoming hand to Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.
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Officials said the dynamite-laden truck was headed for Guayaquil, Ecuador's largest city, for a possible rendezvous with FARC forces in the area.
Earlier in March, Colombian operations led to the deaths of 15 individuals Bogota identified as FARC rebels.
Santos hailed the incident as a "strong blow" to the insurgency, which began as an anti-government revolutionary movement but now is believed to be enmeshed with organized crime and drug trafficking gangs active on lucrative narcotic trails from South America to Central and North America.
Shortly before the shootouts, insurgents killed four Colombian police personnel and ransacked and looted a local branch of the country's Agricultural Bank.
The Colombian government claims it has killed rebel leader Archimedes Munoz Villamil, also known as "Jerome," during recent raids but hasn't offered information on FARC links in Ecuador.
Ecuadoran authorities have tried to mend fences with Colombia and repatriated about 100 Colombian prisoners out of an estimated 750 in the country's prisons.
Officials said the repatriation of Colombian prisoners would resume this year after a three-year suspension as Ecuador broke off diplomatic relations with Colombia.
Relations have been restored but security issues continue to cause mutual suspicion.
Ecuador severed relations with Colombia on March 1, 2008, after a Colombian raid into Ecuador's Angostura area apparently in pursuit of FARC guerrillas that had set up a camp there.
The problem of regional trafficking in firearms and explosives meant for FARC arsenals and surfacing in Ecuador has also caused widespread concern and hardened Ecuador government positions toward Venezuela.
Earlier in March Colombian police arrested a suspected FARC member, accused of being a key liaison between the guerrilla group and international arms traffickers.
Hector Gutierrez was caught in Bogota in possession of an AK-47 assault rifle and other equipment, which police described as samples to promote the sale of a larger shipment of the weapons.
