Clinton: U.S. Drug Policies Failed, Fueled Mexico's Drug War
By Mary Beth Sheridan
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
MEXICO CITY, March 25 -- Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton traveled to Mexico on Wednesday with a stark mea culpa, saying that decades of U.S. anti-narcotics policies had been a failure and contributed to the explosion of drug violence south of the border.
"Clearly what we've been doing has not worked," Clinton told reporters on her plane at the start of her two-day trip. "It is unfair for our incapacity to have effective policies" on curbing drug use, narcotics shipments and the flow of guns "to be creating a situation where people are holding the Mexican government and people responsible. That's not right."
Clinton's comments appeared to be the most sweeping yet by a top Obama administration official accepting a U.S. role in the drug havoc in Mexico. More than 7,000 Mexicans have been killed since January 2008, as cartels have warred over trafficking routes and lashed out at the government for deploying the military against them.
Mexican officials have long complained that the U.S. government pointed the finger at its neighbor while ignoring how American demand for cocaine, marijuana, heroin and methamphetamines fueled the trade. Mexican authorities also blame some of the violence on the flow of American guns, which have been used in about 90 percent of the drug killings, according to both U.S. and Mexican officials.
(More here.)
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
MEXICO CITY, March 25 -- Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton traveled to Mexico on Wednesday with a stark mea culpa, saying that decades of U.S. anti-narcotics policies had been a failure and contributed to the explosion of drug violence south of the border.
"Clearly what we've been doing has not worked," Clinton told reporters on her plane at the start of her two-day trip. "It is unfair for our incapacity to have effective policies" on curbing drug use, narcotics shipments and the flow of guns "to be creating a situation where people are holding the Mexican government and people responsible. That's not right."
Clinton's comments appeared to be the most sweeping yet by a top Obama administration official accepting a U.S. role in the drug havoc in Mexico. More than 7,000 Mexicans have been killed since January 2008, as cartels have warred over trafficking routes and lashed out at the government for deploying the military against them.
Mexican officials have long complained that the U.S. government pointed the finger at its neighbor while ignoring how American demand for cocaine, marijuana, heroin and methamphetamines fueled the trade. Mexican authorities also blame some of the violence on the flow of American guns, which have been used in about 90 percent of the drug killings, according to both U.S. and Mexican officials.
(More here.)
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2 Comments:
Any acceptance of fault from the Mexican side yet? You know for things like corruption, contempt of US laws, etc.?
@Lyn - Of course not, why would they ever accept the truth that it's their fault also. Instead of that they try and get out of it by saying the guns are American and it's the US demand that drives this trade and similar nonsense. If they really were committed to changing anything about this situation they would just accept the truth but here we see the high level of corruption, it's sad.
Take care, Julie
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