( dpa ) - Colombia's military strike against FARC rebels in Ecuador on March 1 was justified, US Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte said Monday.
"We believe they were acting in a justifiable way," Negroponte told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa at a meeting of the Organization of American States (OAS) in Washington.
"We certainly understand why they carried out" the attack, he said.
OAS Foreign Ministers held a meeting aimed at resolving the dispute between Colombia and Ecuador over the strike, which the latter believes violated its territorial integrity.
The airstrike killed Raul Reyes, the second-in-command of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia who had sought refuge in a camp in Ecuador's border region near Colombia.
The assault that killed about 20 people ruptured relations between Colombia and Ecuador and sparked concerns of a possible war. Venezuela, which believes FARC should be recognized as a political entity, sided with Ecuador and both countries mobilized troops along the border with Colombia.
The United States lists FARC as a terrorist organization and backs Colombia's effort to eradicate the group that has waged a bloody civil war for decades. The Colombian government says it seized evidence after the raid showing that FARC has received support from Ecuador and Venezuela.