Pubdate: Wed, 28 Mar 2012
Source: Windsor Star (CN ON)
Copyright: 2012 The Windsor Star
Contact:  http://www.canada.com/windsorstar/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/501

NORTH AMERICA UNITED IN DRUG WAR

Canada, U.S. Pledge Support

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

Defence Minister Peter MacKay held two days of security cooperation 
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's drugs 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 media. 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, he said.

The vast flow of money and guns from north of the border is 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 armed forces participate in that struggle precisely because no 
other agency in the government could face the drug traffickers at 
this time," he said.

"They will have to continue participating in this struggle until we 
have a professional and trustworthy law enforcement in the country."

The three NAFTA partners will increase intelligence exchanges and 
security cooperation on land and sea to confront the cartels, Mackay said.

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

Panetta said the U.S. is prepared to use whatever means necessary to 
bust up the cartels.

"We are committed to doing everything possible to ensure that 
ultimately we cannot only weaken, but end this threat to our people," he said.

Canada and the United States have regularly held bilateral defence 
meetings for decades, but this marks the first time Mexico has been 
included in a regular forum.

- - Postmedia News
- ---
MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom