Ecuador denies blaming US for 'attrition campaign'

QUITO: Ecuador has denied that leftist president Rafael Correa had accused the United States of trying to destabilise his government by infiltrating it with spies, according to an official statement.
Correa had said the US Central Intelligence Agency was trying to "wear down the government" and accused it of helping to organise opposition protests.
But Ecuador's National Secretariat of Communications (Secom) said Correa's comments were taken out of context and misinterpreted by the media.
Correa "at no time... said the CIA was behind the marches," Secom said on Sunday.
It denied Correa accused the CIA of waging a "campaign of attrition," as reported in some local media after Correa's weekly address on Saturday.
The 51-year-old economist trained in the US has faced opposition protests as he seeks constitutional changes that would allow him to seek re-election next year to another four-year term.
Secom said Correa's comments referred to previous accusations that the CIA had "infiltrated the political right," citing diplomatic cables leaked by Wikileaks.
Correa has been president since 2007. His proposed constitutional reforms would allow unlimited re-election, setting him up to run again next year.
Irate union supporters say his plans would not respect workers' right to unionise, and indigenous people say his land legislation would erode their rights over traditional land use. – AFP