Washington ? The United States has provided Colombia’s military with machine guns, combat helicopters and hundreds of military and civilian advisers in the fight against rebels.

So far, it all has been in the name of battling drugs, not guerrillas. But with the breakdown of Colombia’s peace process, momentum is building for greater U.S. involvement.

The United States is exploring steps it can take to provide more help to Colombia while staying within limits set by Congress, generally restricting aid to counternarcotics, a U.S. official said Thursday.

One option under consideration is enhanced intelligence sharing and a speedup in the delivery of spare parts for U.S. helicopters used by the Colombian military, said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The Bush administration also may permit increased U.S.-Colombian aerial spraying of narcotics fields something the Colombians have been seeking.

Late Thursday, State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said the United States “understands and supports” President Andres Pastrana’s decision to suspend peace talks with Colombia’s largest rebel group, known by its Spanish initials FARC.

Boucher said the FARC has increased its terrorist attacks since a Jan. 20 agreement on a timetable for peace talks.

He added: “We are looking at specific ways to continue to support the government of Colombia during this difficult period.”

President Bush’s budget proposal for next year includes military aid unrelated to drugs: $98 million to help Colombia train and arm soldiers to protect a vital oil pipeline from rebel attacks.

Bombs were falling on rebel territory just hours after Pastrana angered by a rebel hijacking of a civilian airliner broke off peace talks and condemned FARC.

The government ordered 13,000 troops to advance on the rebel stronghold.

Army officials said 85 targets were hit in more than 200 sorties. The government did not comment on casualties, but there were unconfirmed reports that the aerial bombardment hit the tiny hamlet of Rubi, killing and injuring civilians.