CARACAS -- Venezuela plans to build five military bases along its border with Colombia.

Justice Minister Tarek El Aissami said the bases will help President Hugo Chávez's government fight drug smuggling, extortion and kidnapping.

The bases will run along the Sierra de Perija, a mountain range in western Venezuela that follows part of its porous 1,400-mile border with Colombia.

Chávez said Venezuela is doing everything possible to crack down on Colombian leftist rebels, right-wing paramilitaries and other criminal groups that operate along the border.

El Aissami announced plans to build the bases while visiting the region on Sunday.

Source: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/americas/venezuela/story/764683.html