Monday, Colombian President Alvaro Uribe defended his policy of “crushing” FARC and his proposals to free hostages, when meeting his counterpart, President Sarkozy, in a diplomatic counter-attack aimed at President of Venezuela, Hugo Chavez.

On Sunday President Uribe began a tour of Europe, including Spain, Switzerland and Brussels to underline his country’s “efforts” to liberate hostages, among them, the French-Colombian Ingrid Betancourt, a priority of Sarkozy’s.

But he also reaffirmed his goal to “crush” FARC, the Marxist guerrillas, just before he was welcomed at the Ely see Palace, two months after a visit by President Hugo Chavez to Paris.

President Uribe asked for help form Sarkozy after having relaunched a mediation effort by the Catholic Church in Colombia with the participation of representatives from France, Spain and Switzerland.

This mediation effort is aimed at bringing about the exchange of 43 h=”political” hostages, among them Ingrid Betancourt, a former presidential candidate in Colombia – for 500 imprisoned rebels.

President Sarkozy pledged support conditionally saying that it could be” useful” if it contained “independent guarantees and a range of discussions vital to its success”.

Sarkozy also “encouraged “Alvaro Uribe not “to exclude any worthwhile course of allowing hostages to be freed soon”, now that Uribe had terminated mediation efforts by Hugo Chavez.

Paris considers Hugo Chavez, who has just brought about the freeing of two hostages, as a major player in getting freedom for Ingrid Betancourt, held for nearly six years and who is apparently in bad shape.

Relations between Caracas and Bogota are in crisis following the decision of Chavez – who described Uribe as “an American lackey” and “a coward” to give FARC the status of freedom fighters and to ask the European Union to cross them off the list of terrorist organisations.

Sarkozy was reticent on this aspect. He replied that”France was continuing to support the position of the European Union”. As far as the French government is concerned, FARC must first free their hundreds of hostages for Europe to change its policy.

Uribe3 described his meeting with President Sarkozy as “very hopeful, very sincere and very helpful”, thanking him for his support in his fight “against terrorism”. RE FARC “we are beating them (…) and France must understand this”, he said.

“The ain of his trip is to take the upper hand” regarding Hugo Chavez, “It’s also a way for Uribe to tell Europe; don’t mistake your enemies. The enemies are FARC”, Fabrice Delloye, Ingrid Betancourt’s ex-husband explained to AFP.

On Sunday, Uribe defended his proposal to have the Catholic Church mediate, in his talks with Fabrice Delloye and the hostage’s son, Lorenzo, whom he met for the first time since 2002.

“It’s the first time that I heard him say he wanted talks” stressed Lorenzo Delloye. The International Federation of Ingrid Betancourt committee (FICIB) is more circumspect saying that in its opinion, Uribe came to “create anti-FARC propaganda in Europe”.

Uribe leaves for Brussels where he meets the Chief European Diplomat Javier Solana. Wednesday he will be in Madrid before going to Switzerland where he takes part in the World Economic Forum in Davos.