ANTI-TERROR ALLIES LAG IN DRUG WAR, SAYS REPORT

WASHINGTON - The United States said yesterday that top anti-terror
allies Afghanistan, Pakistan and Colombia had fallen short in the war
on drugs despite enhanced counter-narcotics efforts, and it
criticized perennial foes Iran, North Korea and Venezuela for not cooperating.

The State Department also noted backsliding in some key Latin
American nations such as Bolivia. It praised improved performances by
Mexico and traditional Asian transshipment points China and Thailand,
but slammed neighboring Myanmar for illicit drug production.

In its annual global survey of the drug war, the report said opium
poppy production in Afghanistan, long the world's top producer of
heroin's main ingredient, continued to pose a major threat because of
links with groups such as the Taliban.

In the Western Hemisphere, Colombia, Mexico, Venezuela and Bolivia
were identified once again as major suppliers of illegal drugs,
mainly cocaine, to the U.S., Europe and Asia.

Only Bogota and Mexico City were singled out for positive efforts.
The report said the governments of Colombian President Alvaro Uribe
and Mexican President Felipe Calder--n were committed to fighting the
narcotics trade.

This was not the case in Venezuela and Bolivia, where hostile
governments had either refused to cooperate or were lagging in the
counter-narcotics field, the report said.