Tuesday 11 November
2008, San José, Costa
Rica
FSLN Leads Nicaragua
Elections
Riots Over Election Results in Managua
Guatemala Bus Fire "A
Mass Murder"
Colombia Hails Mexico's Drug War
Venezuelan Diplomats In
Houston Asked To Leave
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Colombia Hails Mexico's
Drug War
Mexico City - The
presidents of Colombia
and Mexico have agreed
to intensify joint
efforts to combat
powerful cartels that
control the flow of
drugs in both countries.
Alvaro Uribe praised his
Mexican counterpart
Felipe Calderon for his
efforts while on a visit
to Mexico.
The Mexican leader has
deployed some 40,000
troops to tackle drug
gangs since taking
office in December 2006.
But critics say the rise
in drug-related violence
shows the war against
organised crime is far
from won.
More than 4,000 people
have been killed in
drug-related violence so
far this year, as gangs
fight each other and the
security forces.
Calderon pointed to the
recent confiscation from
the cartels of a large
haul of weapons as a
sign that his war on
drugs is working.
And speaking at a
business conference in
Monterrey, Uribe
expressed confidence in
the Mexican strategy.
"When you live in a
country like Colombia
that has already faced
that intense fight
against crime, one is
very happy to see
efforts like those of
President Calderon," he
said.
Colombia is world's top
producer of cocaine,
while Mexico is a major
transit point.
Uribe emphasized
Colombia's own work to
slow the flow of drugs
and assist US
prosecutors, noting that
his government had
carried out some 900
extradition orders since
he took office.
The Colombian leader
urged Calderon to adopt
his policy of paying
large rewards for
information leading to
the killing or capture
of drugs traffickers.
On Monday, President
Calderon named lawyer
Fernando Gomez Mont to
be his new interior
minister after the
previous holder of the
job, Juan Camilo Mourino,
died in a plane crash
last week.
Mr Gomez Mont pledged to
oversee an efficient and
strong security cabinet
to confront the drug
cartels.
In his first news
conference, he responded
to questions about some
of his past clients, who
included bankers and
businessmen accused of
fraud and
money-laundering, saying
he saw no conflict of
interest.
"I am not a man with
ulterior motives," he
told reporters.
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