The Colombian Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC) regard Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez as an ideological leader, identify with him and admire him, said Tuesday Colombian Minister of Foreign Affairs Fernando Araújo, a former hostage.

"The FARC guerrilla I met, views Venezuela's President Chávez as an ideological leader," Araújo asserted. Last December 31st, the minister tapped into a military incursion and managed to escape from captivity after almost six years in the Colombian jungle.

"I was much interested to see that they (the rebels) constantly study Chávez' biography, see documentary films of Chávez on TV. There is a feeling of excitement among guerrilla members when they listen to President Chávez on the radio," the senior official told reporters on the occasion of a seminar in Washington D.C.