Pubdate: Tue, 19 Mar 2002 Source: Chicago Tribune (IL) Copyright: 2002 Chicago Tribune Company Contact: http://www.chicagotribune.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/82 HAVANA SEEKS CRIME PACT Items Compiled From Tribune News Services HAVANA, CUBA -- Cuba announced Monday that it was holding an alleged Colombian drug trafficker sought in his homeland and the United States and challenged the U.S. to sign an agreement allowing the two countries to cooperate in the fight against narcotics smuggling. The Cuban government did not say whether it would hand over Rafael Miguel Bustamante Bolanos if such an agreement was signed. But it suggested it would be more cooperative if accords existed. For several years, President Fidel Castro and Cuban officials have been trying to persuade Washington to sign such an agreement. They argue that this impoverished island has limited law-enforcement resources and needs the technological resources and expertise of the United States in its fight against narcotics smuggling. So far, the U.S. has expressed no interest in such an agreement with a country it has not had diplomatic relations with for four decades. - --- MAP posted-by: Keith Brilhart