Pubdate: Tue, 23 Oct 2007
Source: Arizona Republic (Phoenix, AZ)
Copyright: 2007 The Arizona Republic
Contact:  http://www.arizonarepublic.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/24
Authors: Mike Madden and Chris Hawley
Note: Reporters Sergio Solache and Sean Holstege contributed to this article.
Alert: Just Say NO To 'Plan Mexico' http://www.mapinc.org/alert/0352.html
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/area/Mexico (Mexico)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/people/Felipe+Calderon
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine)

BUSH SEEKS $550 MILLION TO FIGHT DRUGS

Aid to Mexico Would Reflect Unprecedented Cooperation

WASHINGTON - The Bush administration asked Congress on Monday for 
$550 million to fight drug smugglers and organized crime in Mexico 
and Central America, part of a sweeping aid package that could boost 
efforts to fight increasingly powerful cartels south of the border.

All but $50 million would go to Mexico, where it would be a down 
payment on what eventually could be $1.4 billion in training, 
surveillance equipment, canine units, planes and helicopters for 
law-enforcement and military agencies over the next three years. The 
rest would help pay for multinational anti-drug and anti-gang 
programs throughout Central America.

The proposal represents an unprecedented level of cooperation between 
U.S. and Mexican authorities on security matters, breaking more than 
a century of Mexican reluctance to give the U.S. influence on military affairs.

If Congress approved the aid, which is tied to a $46 billion request 
to pay for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, it would give a 
significant boost to Mexican President Felipe Calderon's battle 
against crime, according to administration officials and independent analysts.

Mexico is embroiled in a battle with drug lords who have grown 
increasingly powerful.

In December, just days after taking office, Calderon ordered 
thousands of troops into his home state of Michoacan, a center of 
methamphetamine production, to quell drug violence.

That was followed by deployments of troops to Nuevo Laredo, Tijuana, 
Acapulco and other drug hot spots. Drug gangs have responded by 
assassinating top police officials.

Many of the cartels that ship drugs and weapons across the 
U.S.-Mexican border are also involved in smuggling people into the 
country, contributing to illegal immigration.

"We're faced with a security challenge in Mexico of significant 
proportions, and the Mexicans have come to us looking for a way to 
build a level of cooperation that can actually have an impact," said 
Thomas Shannon, assistant secretary of State for the Western Hemisphere.

Violence along the Arizona-Sonora border has been more muted than in 
other places, but the area remains a major drug-crossing point.

In May, a mass kidnapping by drug smugglers and an ensuing shootout 
with police in the hills of eastern Sonora killed 22 people. The 
Mexican government sent federal agents to reinforce local police.

In recent years, the United States has helped Mexican customs 
officials on the Arizona border by donating X-ray machines and 
equipment for inspecting the side panels of vehicles. Several donated 
helicopters are based at the Hermosillo airport and have been used to 
chase down drug planes.

Shift in U.S. Approach

Part of the new aid package would pay for training and equipment for 
Mexico's federal police and military, as well as communications 
equipment, software to help police agencies track cases, 
witness-protection programs and other attempts to professionalize law 
enforcement.

That would be a big step forward, said Bill Newell, special agent in 
charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in 
Phoenix. Now, Mexican authorities call the ATF to do weapons traces, 
and the databases are all in English.

"It allows them to manage information better and connect the dots," 
Newell said. "This will modernize the judicial and law-enforcement systems."

Analysts said the proposal marks a shift in the U.S. approach to drug 
smuggling because Washington officials were not expecting Latin 
American governments to deal with the problem on their own. Most drug 
traffic through Central America is headed to the United States.

"We think this is very positive in the fact that it's recognizing the 
U.S.'s shared responsibility for what is going on in Mexico and also 
in Central America, and that this isn't something that can be 
addressed by any country on its own," said Maureen Meyer, who handles 
Mexican issues for the Washington Office on Latin America, a 
nonpartisan think tank.

Alonzo Pena, special agent in charge of the Phoenix office of 
Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said he has never seen so much 
aid or cooperation.

"It's a tremendous amount of assistance," he said. "It's going to 
impact both sides of the border."

The plan has been under consideration for some time, fueling a debate 
in Mexico about how much aid to accept from U.S. agencies. Since 
Mexico lost half of its territory to the United States in the 1846-48 
Mexican-American War, cooperation on military matters has been 
controversial there.

But as cartels have grown more powerful, Mexican officials have 
worked more closely with their U.S. counterparts. U.S. authorities 
have praised Calderon's decision to extradite kingpins and share intelligence.

Mexican Foreign Minister Patricia Espinosa stressed repeatedly that 
U.S. troops will not be carrying out missions on Mexican soil. But 
she said foreign help is a "necessary complement" to Mexico's fight 
against drugs.

"We are neighbors, and the strengthening of actions on one side (of 
the border) has positive effects on the other," she said.

Hearings Scheduled

Rep. Eliot Engel, D-N.Y., who chairs a House subcommittee on the 
Western Hemisphere, criticized the administration for not consulting 
Congress - members still have not been briefed - while developing the 
proposal. His panel will hold a hearing this week.

The broader request could have trouble winning approval on Capitol 
Hill because it is tied to war spending and top Democrats have 
decried the ongoing cost of the war in Iraq.

The aid package grew out of meetings in March that Bush held with 
Calderon, who asked for the aid then. U.S. officials were careful to 
distinguish this plan from other U.S. anti-drug operations in Central 
and South America.

The plan is called the "Merida Initiative," after the city where Bush 
and Calderon met.

The State Department, not the Pentagon, would handle the aid. In a 
similar operation in Colombia, the Defense Department funds 
U.S.-trained soldiers and private contractors, who have engaged in 
combat with insurgents who use drug proceeds to fund a military conflict.

"The threat Mexico faces is distinct," Shannon said. "They're not 
facing armed insurgencies intent on overthrowing the government."

Although government officials on both sides of the border said the 
deal would significantly help the fight against drugs, analysts 
cautioned that any gains could be short-lived without a similar focus 
on reducing demand in the United States.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Richard Lake