BUSH MAY END MEXICO DRUG EVALUATION

WASHINGTON (AP) President Bush is open to ending the annual U.S.
evaluation of Mexico's drug-fighting efforts, officials said Thursday, in a
goodwill gesture on the eve of Bush's trip to visit newly installed Mexican
President Vicente Fox.

"Mexico has seen a new birth of freedom," Bush said at the State Department
as he prepared for the first foreign trip of his presidency. Fox and other
Mexican leaders have railed against the congressionally mandated drug
certification process, which can result in economic penalties.

Talks between the two leaders are expected to trace a wide range of issues,
including immigration, trade, energy and drugs. But no major developments
are planned for the scheduled 7 1/2-hour session at San Cristobal, the site
of Fox's dusty ranch 210 miles northwest of Mexico City in the state of
Guanajuato.

Bush and Fox - both ranch owners who favor Western wear and enchiladas -
plan to stress their personal ties, not their nations' differences. As they
meet, there will be a series of picture-taking sessions showing them in
cozy, casual settings.

"President Fox and I met as governors, and I look forward to deepening our
friendship," said Bush, a former two-term Texas governor. "But I look
forward even more to forging a deeper partnership between our two great
nations."

One sticking point in U.S.-Mexico relations is the 14-year-old law
requiring the U.S. president to certify annually which of nearly 30
countries are cooperating in the fight against drug trafficking. Those
considered not to be doing enough can be "decertified" and face possible
sanctions. The next deadline for State Department decisions on
certification is March 1.

The process has infuriated many countries, most notably Mexico, that view
it as a condescending and hypocritical exercise by the nation that is the
world's largest consumer of illegal drugs. Mexico has never failed to be
certified.

Previewing the trip, White House press secretary Ari Fleischer said Bush
wants to work with Mexico to reduce drug trafficking and has noted "some
questions that have been raised on Capitol Hill about whether the current
certification regime is, indeed, the most appropriate way to do so."

He was referring to proposals that would change or eliminate the
certification process, including one that would exempt Mexico for one year
and another that would end the process altogether.

Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, a major defender of certifications, wants to
change the process to focus more on countries with poor records in fighting
drugs.

Fleischer said of Bush, "He's open to reviewing the legislative proposals
that have been made."

Two administration officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the
White House is signaling Bush's willingness to lift or dramatically change
the certification process as a gesture to Mexico. They noted that only
Congress could change the law, and said it was highly unlikely that Bush
would make his support a part of the joint statement that he and Fox will
release after Friday's meetings.

A senior administration official, who conducted a White House news
conference on condition of not being identified, suggested that Bush's
stance was linked to Fox's election, which ended seven decades of one-party
control. She called Fox a "dedicated partner" in the war on drugs.

Secretary of State Colin Powell said during his confirmation hearing that
certification can be "self-defeating" and a sign of "American hubris,"
though he stressed that he had not yet discussed the topic with Bush.

Less than a month into office, the president is making a quick trip to a
familiar country before taking the training wheels off his foreign policy:
He travels to Canada in April for the Summit of Americas, and has overseas
journeys penciled in for later this year.

Aides said a joint statement being drafted in advance of the Fox meeting is
a broad document that sets the tone for what officials are calling "an
authentic partnership." It also is expected to assign top aides - Powell
and Attorney General John Ashcroft from the U.S. - to study immigration issues.

Despite the positive talk, differences between the countries include:

- -The issue of amnesty for millions of Mexicans living in the United States.
The administration official who briefed reporters said her boss doesn't
think amnesty is the best approach to solving the immigration problem. Fox
supports amnesty.

- -Mexican trucks in the United States. An arbitration panel has ruled that
the United States violated the NAFTA agreement by refusing to allow trucks
full access to American highways. Bush says American motorists and Mexican
trucks can someday share U.S. highways, but he has no plan yet on how to
get there.

- -Bush wants private capital from the United States to help build Mexican
power plants, which could provide energy to California. Mexico's
constitution all but prohibits foreign control of energy production.