Pubdate: Mon, 23 Apr 2001 Source: National Public Radio (US) Show: All Things Considered Copyright: 2001 National Public Radio Contact: http://www.npr.org/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1296 Anchor: Linda Wertheimer GENERAL BARRY MCCAFFREY DISCUSSES THE US RELATIONSHIP WITH PERU AND ITS WAR ON DRUGS WERTHEIMER: General Barry McCaffrey was in charge of the war on drugs in the Clinton administration after he retired from the military. Now he heads his own consulting company. He joins us from his office in northern Virginia. General McCaffrey, there was an American aircraft providing intelligence when the missionary aircraft was shot down in Peru. Could you just explain to us what this project is. I mean, how did the US get involved in flying those sorts of missions in tandem with Peruvian fighter aircraft? How does that work? General BARRY McCAFFREY (Former Director, Office of National Drug Policy): Well, for the past probably at least seven to eight years, throughout the region, but in particular the Andean ridge on the Caribbean, there is a cooperative intelligence sharing agreement between the 34 nations of the hemisphere in which in many ways the United States tries to support their national authorities with counter drug intelligence. And clearly that includes some extensive use of US intelligence and surveillance. WERTHEIMER: General McCaffrey, as we have read about this particular incident there's been a regular alphabet soup of organizations of elements of the national government that have been involved--our national government. The State Department, the Defense Department, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Central Intelligence Agency; the plane comes from one group, the pilots come from another group. Can you sort out how something like that happens from your own experience? Gen. McCAFFREY: When it comes to the detection and monitoring mission, normally that is coordinated in the international arena by the US armed forces. There are two headquarters. One called Joint Inter-Agency Task Force East in Key West, Florida, headed by a Coast Guard two-star admiral, that tries to ensure a coherent, comprehensive and cooperative operation in Latin America. But there's another headquarters that does it in the Pacific region. And by the way, you know, in the case of Peru and Bolivia, that program has worked in a spectacular fashion. Peru is able to reduce their cocaine production by more than 65 percent in the last five years. Now part of that's due to this air interdiction. WERTHEIMER: General McCaffrey, when you were running this kind of thing from your end was there some sort of principle stated about when the United States intelligence aircraft said that an aircraft was suspicious or when they said that it was not; when the go--given the go-ahead to shoot at an aircraft and when they were not; some sort of protocol to follow that said who could say no? Gen. McCAFFREY: Well, not being in public office I don't know what the procedures now are, but as general statement, only the authorities of a national government can exercise any authority at all, and then only in accordance with their own national law and international law over criminal counter-drug actions in their own air, land or sea space. So this must be a decision of national authorities. WERTHEIMER: Do I take it that is your view that there must have been some sort of very serious breakdown? Gen. McCAFFREY: Oh, it looks to me at face value that it was, you know, a terrible tragedy. It calls for a careful investigation to check the training and the command and control and the procedures. They've got to get this right. We can't subject innocent air traffic to interdiction. WERTHEIMER: General Barry McCaffrey is the former director of the Office of National Drug Policy for the White House. He served under President Clinton. He is now president of a consulting firm, McCaffrey Associates, and is teaching part time at West Point. General McCaffrey, thanks very much. Gen. McCAFFREY: OK. Bye, bye. - --- MAP posted-by: Beth