Pubdate: Sat, 07 Jun 2008
Source: Daily Nonpareil, The (IA)
Copyright: 2008 The Daily Nonpareil
Contact:  http://www.Nonpareilonline.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/3234
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/topics/mexico
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/coke.htm (Cocaine)

RECORD SEIZURES

On Thursday, top U.S. drug interdiction officials said  U.S.
authorities seized a record 316 metric tons of  cocaine last year. In
making the announcement, the officials credited Mexico's increasing
cooperation with  helping force drug traffickers to raise their prices
 and try new smuggling methods.

John Walters, director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy,
said the record seizures have led to a  21 percent jump in the price
of cocaine and a drop in  the purity of the drug. The price of
methamphetamine  has jumped even more, he said, thanks to a crackdown
on  U.S. labs and Mexican authorities doing more to stop  importation
of precursor material.

U.S. Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen, commandant of the  Coast Guard and
chairman of the Interdiction Committee, a multi-agency committee
focused on stopping the flow  of drugs into the U.S., said the rise in
drug prices  shows U.S. anti-drug efforts are working.

The average price of a pure gram of cocaine was $96.58  in early 2007
and rose to $117.22 by the end of the year, according to ONDCP,
citing data from the U.S.  Drug Enforcement Administration.

Allen also said traffickers have been forced to find new ways to try
to sneak drugs in, including the use of  submarine-like watercraft
capable of carrying up to 10  tons of cocaine. The vessels, almost
entirely submerged  in water, have been spotted from South America to
the  Northern California coast.

Federal officials said a key difference is an unprecedented level of
cooperation between the U.S. and  Mexico in combating drug
trafficking. Walters praised  Mexican President Felipe Calderon's
efforts to crack  down on drug cartels.

"There has never been an investment like this before,"  Walters said,
referring to a proposed U.S. aid package  and the Mexican deployment
of soldiers around the  country. "We can't do this effectively without
 international partnerships."

Increasing levels of violence among drug cartels, particularly in
northern Mexican border cities where  police are routinely being
targeted by the cartels, are  proof that the government's latest
efforts are working,  said Michael Braun, the DEA's chief of
operations. He  said a similar spike in violence was seen in Colombia 
when the government there launched its offensive  against powerful
drug cartels.

"This is a classic turf war," Braun said. "An added dimension of the
story is the commitment by President  Calderon ... to take on these
very powerful drug  cartels."

A bill that would provide about $1.4 billion over three years to help
Mexico in its ongoing fight against drug  cartels and violent gangs is
currently stalled in the  Senate. Approval of that funding should be a
priority.
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