Pubdate: Tue, 28 Nov 2000 Source: Atlanta Journal-Constitution (GA) Copyright: 2000 Cox Interactive Media. Contact: Journal: Constitution: http://www.accessatlanta.com/ajc/ Forum: http://www.accessatlanta.com/community/forums/ Author: George Gedda, Associated Press Bookmark: Colombia http://www.mapinc.org/colombia.htm U.S. FEARS SPILLOVER OF DRUG TRADE As Colombia Cracks Down, Nearby Nations Need Help To Stop Traffickers From Relocating, Officials Say. Washington --- A top official said Monday the Clinton administration plans to augment efforts to deal with the possibility that Colombian drug traffickers will transfer their activities to neighboring countries as Colombia develops more effective ways to fight the narcotics trade. The State Department's third-ranking official, Thomas Pickering, said the issue will be a "centerpiece" of the administration's counternarcotics assistance requests next year. Pickering said bipartisan support for the existing $1.3 billion program, directed mainly at Colombia, ensures the counterdrug effort will continue regardless of who is elected president. "The issue of spillover is real," said Pickering, who visited Colombia last week along with Barry McCaffrey, head of the White House drug control office. Pickering said drug operations have spilled into Colombia because highly effective counterdrug operations in Peru and Bolivia forced traffickers to relocate. The U.S. goal, he said, is to strengthen counterdrug efforts in countries where traffickers already operate or that may be future targets. Among those countries are Venezuela, Brazil and Panama, Pickering said, adding that spillover could jeopardize the current sharp reduction in drug trafficking in Peru and Bolivia. The administration lost a key supporter recently when Rep. Benjamin Gilman (R-N.Y.), chairman of the House International Relations Committee, said officials made a "major mistake" in shifting most counternarcotics assistance to Colombia from the police to the military. Another critic, Sen. Paul Wellstone (D-Minn.), planned to fly to Colombia today to assess the administration's strategy. Wellstone said he was concerned the administration's counterdrug strategy in Colombia is becoming a military counterinsurgency policy. - --- MAP posted-by: Terry Liittschwager