US Planning $1.4 Billion Drug Control Funding Package For Mexico

The US and Mexico have nearly finalized negotiations for a $1.4 billion dollar drug control funding package. Legislation to approve the deal is reported to be included in a much larger military spending bill. The Dallas Morning News reported on Oct. 2, 2007 ("US May Send Mexico $1.4 Billion In Drug War") that "Tucked in the Pentagon's massive budget request is at least $1.4 billion in U.S. aid to Mexico for its fight against increasingly violent drug kingpins - including better training and high-tech tools. Negotiators for the two countries have agreed on the package now awaiting U.S. congressional approval, officials familiar with the proposal said Monday."

According to the Morning News, "It was unclear whether the Mexican aid package is contained in the $460 billion 2008 defense authorization bill, which the U.S. Senate approved 92-3 Monday night, or in a pending $193 billion supplemental Iraq war budget. One Senate Republican aide familiar with details of the bill said the money is in the measure approved Monday night, but neither U.S. nor Mexican officials could confirm that. In any case, the defense bill still needs to be finalized by House and Senate negotiators before going to President Bush for his signature - and the legislative process is still weeks from completion. A U.S. official familiar with the aid package said it probably will come up for debate in the coming days and weeks as details of the bill become public. The official requested anonymity. Beyond the two-year duration of the aid arrangement, the governments would probably form a permanent cooperation agreement that must be agreed upon by the next U.S. administration following the 2008 presidential election, officials said. In general, the plan calls for the U.S. to take on a bigger role in the fight against Mexican drug traffickers - and it represents a significant increase from the estimated $40 million Mexico currently receives annually from the U.S. government."

The Morning News noted that "Phil Jordan, former head of the regional Drug Enforcement Administration office in Dallas, is skeptical. 'Until you reduce U.S. demand for drugs and weed out the immense corruption among Mexico's law enforcement, pouring more U.S. money into Mexico won't necessarily solve the problem,' he said."