Pubdate: 16 Feb 1999 Source: Bergen Record (NJ) Copyright: 1999 Bergen Record Corp. Feedback: http://www.bergen.com/cgi-bin/feedback Website: http://www.bergen.com/ MEXICO LIKELY WILL REMAIN ALLY IN DRUG WAR CLINTON: COOPERATION `HAS CLEARLY IMPROVED' President Clinton on Monday all but assured Mexican President Ernesto Zedillo that he again would certify Mexico as a cooperative ally in the war against drugs, brushing aside disappointing results and U.S. congressional criticism. "The fundamental question is: Are we better off fighting it together or separately, and perhaps sometimes at odds with one another?" Clinton said at the outset of a meeting with Zedillo in this sun-washed town on the Yucatan Peninsula. Clinton cautioned that "neither country has won the drug war," but added there is reason for optimism on both sides of the border. "Finally, we've got a lot of the indicators going in the right direction in the United States. And cooperation with Mexico has clearly improved under President Zedillo's leadership," Clinton said. Accompanied by Hillary Rodham Clinton on the 23-hour trip, Clinton also made his first remarks on post-impeachment politics since the Senate acquitted him Friday. He vowed to cooperate with the Republican Congress that tried to oust him, saying it is the only way to enact needed reforms. A 24-member congressional delegation, including four Republicans, joined him on the trip. "This is a time for reconciliation and renewal," he said. "We can't solve the challenges of Social Security and Medicare and education and these other things, we can't keep the American economy going, unless we have a level of cooperation." But it was the subject of drugs that dominated the talks here. Clinton's annual certification of Mexico is necessary to keep U.S. aid flowing. The certification is due in two weeks, although Clinton has not yet formally announced his decision. It would take a two-thirds vote of Congress to overturn his decision. Since 1986, the United States has been required by law to annually certify that authorities in drug-producing countries are cooperating with U.S. anti-drug efforts. Those that aren't certified face economic sanctions such as U.S. aid cutoff. Mexico bristles at having to pass muster by another country. Authorities complain that the U.S. certification law undermines trust between the two nations. Clinton also does not like the law but has followed it. Like Presidents Ronald Reagan and George Bush before him, he has routinely granted Mexico's certification. With cocaine and other illegal drugs continuing to stream into U.S. cities, many members of Congress are expected to raise their annual demand that Mexico be punished. These critics complain about corruption among Mexican authorities, an apparent decrease in seizures of cocaine last year, and a drop in the number of heroin-producing poppy fields destroyed. U.S. officials counter that Mexican authorities are finally starting to work with U.S. authorities. "I am impressed with the Mexican commitment to doing something about it, to recognizing that it can't happen overnight, that sometimes there are more frustrations than there are victories," said Attorney General Janet Reno. And U.S. officials insist that Mexico is doing fine fighting illegal drugs. On cocaine, Mexico seized less in 1998 than the year before, but about the same amount as in 1994, said Tom Umberg, a spokesman for the White House Office of National Drug Policy. On heroin, he said, there may be more land being used to grow poppies, but the growers have been forced to hide their once-open crops and to disperse their fields. "They've made great progress with respect to the poppy," Umberg said. Just before the summit, Zedillo announced that his government would commit an additional $400 million to $500 million toward combating illegal drugs. During the summit, Clinton announced that the FBI will offer training and technical help to the new Mexican Federal Preventive Police force, which is being created to buttress local police, who are often poorly educated and underpaid. Also on Monday, Reno signed an agreement with Mexican Foreign Secretary Rosario Green to combat violence along the U.S.-Mexico border. The pact calls for new training for local and national law enforcement authorities and formal communications between U.S. attorneys and Mexican consuls along the border. With drugs always a source of tension between the two countries, Clinton was glad to turn to economic cooperation. Mexico has surpassed Japan as the second-largest buyer of U.S. goods and services after Canada, and U.S. officials believe the increased trade has helped protect North America from the worst effects of the Asian financial crisis. Eager to boost cross-border trade, the U.S. Export-Import Bank extended a $4 billion line of credit to help Mexico buy U.S. goods and services. The two-year line of credit is designed to help the Mexican public and private sectors purchase raw materials, capital equipment, aircraft, and other services from the United States. - --- MAP posted-by: Mike Gogulski