US: Mexico should soon have anti-drug aid

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NESTOR IKEDA ASSOCIATED PRESS
Originally published 04:39 p.m., October 23, 2008, updated 04:18 p.m., October 23, 2008

PUERTO VALLARTA, MEXICO (AP) - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Thursday that Mexico should soon have a $400 million U.S. aid package to help fight drug cartels.

The three-year Merida Initiative has been stalled as the Bush administration verifies to Congress that Mexico is meeting basic human rights and other international standards.

But Rice told Mexican Foreign Secretary Patricia Espinosa that the verification process should be resolved soon.

"This initiative takes our efforts to a new level," she said. "I assured Patricia ... that the United States considers this important initiative and its implementation an urgent task."

However, it was unclear when the money would be released. Presidential elections in November will choose Bush's replacement, and he will leave office in January.

The Mexican government has urged the U.S. to release the money approved by Congress in June. It says it needs to buy planes and provide training to police and soldiers fighting a violent, national campaign against the world's most powerful drug cartels.

President Felipe Calderon has sent more than 20,000 soldiers and federal police across Mexico to take back territory controlled by drug gangs. Cartels caught in nationwide turf battles have responded with unprecedented violence, beheading their enemies and targeting security officials.

Rice and Espinosa also signed an agreement to cooperate during natural disasters.

Espinosa applauded the meeting as proof of the countries' close ties and said the Merida Initiative was a "sign of the maturity in our cooperation on security issues."