Pubdate: Wed, 28 Mar 2012
Source: Victoria Times-Colonist (CN BC)
Copyright: 2012 Times Colonist
Contact: http://www2.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/letters.html
Website: http://www.timescolonist.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/481
Author: Jeff Davis

DEFENCE MINISTERS TURN GUNS ON INTERNATIONAL DRUG CARTELS

OTTAWA - Canada, the United States and Mexico resolved Tuesday to 
boost efforts to curb the drug war that has claimed the lives of 
150,000 Mexicans in the first trilateral meeting of North American 
defence ministers.

Defence Minister Peter Mackay held two days of security co-operation 
talks in Ottawa with U.S. Secretary of Defence Leon Panetta, Mexican 
Secretary of Defence Gen. Guillermo Galvan and Mexican Secretary of 
the Navy Adm. Mariano Saynez Mendoza.

Mackay said the war with Mexico-based drug cartels has become a major 
concern for Canada.

"If it's a problem for Mexico, it's a problem for Canada," he said. 
"We have over a million Canadian citizens that go to Mexico annually, 
and a number of citizens who make their second home in Mexico."

Galvan gave a detailed briefing on the drug war ravaging his country, 
which Panetta said is now generating "tremendous violence."

"The number the Mexican officials mentioned is 150,000 who have died 
because of the violence, largely among these cartels in Mexico," Panetta said.

Mexico is facing a "colossally huge" threat from the drugs cartels, 
Galvan told reporters. The cartels are fighting primarily for control 
of the smuggling routes used to move their product north to lucrative 
markets in the U.S. and Canada, Panetta said.

Money and guns from the U.S. and Canada are fuelling the fire, he 
said. The corrupting influence of the cartels is such that civil law 
enforcement agencies can no longer be trusted, Galvan said.

The three countries will increase intelligence exchanges and security 
cooperation to confront the cartels, Mackay said.

"Quite frankly, these cartels don't recognize borders, they don't 
recognize nationalities," he said.

Canada and the U.S. have held bilateral defence meetings for decades, 
but this marked the first time Mexico has been included in a regular forum.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom