Ecuadorian Foreign Minister Fander Falconi said in Ecuador Friday that he will not have dialogue with his Colombian counterpart Jaime Bermudez during the Union of South American Nations (Unasur) defense and foreign ministers' meeting to be held here on Tuesday.

"I consider it very complicated to begin a bilateral dialogue with Colombia during the Unasur meeting, as the meeting is a multilateral one," Falconi said.

However, they have agreed "to set a bilateral dialogue in the context of the United Nations General Assembly" to be held next week in New York, Falcon said in a press conference together with Defense Minister Javier Ponce.

Ecuador and Colombia severed ties in March 2008 after a Colombian army entered Ecuadorian territory during a raid against Colombian guerillas without notifying the Ecuadorian government.

Ecuador considered the raid a violation of its territorial sovereignty. Since then the two countries fell foul of each other and were in constant spat.

(Xinhua News Agency September 12, 2009)