State Department Cites Drug Threats

Both Mexico and Afghanistan may have made some gains in fighting drug trafficking, but serious concerns remain, according to the International Narcotics Control Strategy Report, which is the US State Department’s annual review of foreign governments’ efforts to comply with international and UN drug control conventions.

The report praised Mexican President Felipe Calderon’s efforts, which have included sending thousands of troops to fight the drug cartels.

“The restructuring of security forces, coupled with the military’s strong engagement in the fight to dismantle major drug trafficking organizations, has proven to be effective,” the report said. “These efforts led to numerous arrests of key narcotraffickers, the discovery of clandestine drug laboratories, and a dramatic decline in the importation of methamphetamine ... into the United States.”

Crackdown Sparks Violence

But the report noted that the crackdown had sparked violence in Mexico. More than 6,000 people were killed last year as drug cartels fought the authorities and each other over control of drug routes into the US.

“They are confronting each other and the result is unfortunately a significant increase in violence,” said David Johnson, the assistant secretary of state for international narcotics and law enforcement. “This is a serious challenge for both the government of Mexico and the United States.”

Other Concerns in Latin America

Other concerns in Latin America included the growing presence of drug trafficking groups that have been driven out of Mexico and Colombia following government crackdowns. Bolivia and Venezuela had also “failed demonstrably” to adhere to international anti-drug agreements.

In Afghanistan, poppy cultivation was down 19 percent in 2008 from the year before. Drug trafficking and poppy growing, however, had continued to fuel insurgencies in the country’s south.

The report also noted that about 60 countries, including the US, are home to banks and other financial institutions that conduct transactions identified as money laundering for drug traffickers.

--Beth Kampschror