Colombia:Relations between Venezuela and Colombia have taken a dramatic turn for the worse after Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez called his Colombian counterpart, Alvaro Uribe, a shameless liar, and Mr Uribe retorted that Mr Chavez was a "legitimiser of terrorists".
Stung by Mr Uribe's abrupt cancellation on Wednesday of Mr Chávez's role as mediator between Colombia's government and left-wing rebels, the Venezuelan president lashed out on Sunday, saying he was putting relations with Colombia in the "deep freezer" and warning that economic relations may suffer.
"Why don't you show your face?" Mr Chávez said, referring to Mr Uribe in a televised speech. "President Uribe is lying . . . in a shameless, horrible, ugly way. I think Colombia deserves another president, it deserves a better president."
Mr Uribe soon responded in kind, saying Mr Chávez was "fomenting an expansionist plan", referring to his political ambitions of regional influence. "The truth is, President Chávez, you can't incite the continent as you do, talking one day against Spain, the next against the United States, mistreating one day Mexico, the next day Peru, and Bolivia the morning after."
He also accused Mr Chávez and left-wing Colombian senator Piedad Córdoba, who was facilitating contact with the Farc, of being more interested in promoting "terrorist influence . . . than in helping us overcome the tragedy of the hostages".
The name-calling shocked analysts because relations between the two countries could have been described as amiable a few days ago, despite the differences between the left-wing Mr Chávez and conservative Mr Uribe.
Mr Uribe abruptly withdrew his approval on Wednesday of Mr Chávez acting as a go-between in efforts to foster a humanitarian accord between Colombia and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, known as Farc. Mr Chávez hoped to bring about the release of 45 political kidnapping victims in Farc hands in exchange for hundreds of suspected rebels in Colombian jails.
But Mr Chávez broke protocol on Wednesday afternoon by speaking directly to the Colombian military command, something Mr Uribe had prohibited. That night a spokesman for Mr Uribe thanked Mr Chávez for his efforts but said the breach had put an end to his mediation.
Economist Juan Carlos Echeverry, a Bogotá-based economist with LatinSource consulting firm, said the impact of damaged cross-border trade with Venezuela would be grave and cost each side jobs. Colombia could be the bigger loser.
Colombia and Venezuela share a 1,300-mile border. Economic integration of the countries has accelerated with a joint natural gas pipeline under construction, and other energy projects are on the drawing board.