US, MEXICO TO ADDRESS DRUG VIOLENCE

MEXICO CITY - Mexican and U.S. officials will meet Thursday to
discuss U.S. Ambassador Tony Garza's concerns about growing drug
violence in Mexico, the government here said.

In a statement by the Foreign Relations Department late Friday, the
Mexican government said it wanted to clarify "discrepancies" in a
letter Garza sent a day earlier to the Mexican government.

The ambassador advised U.S. citizens to exercise extreme caution when
traveling in Mexico because of "the rising level of brutal violence."
On Saturday, U.S. Embassy spokeswoman Judith Bryan didn't have
details on the meeting. But she said: "We look forward to working
with the Mexican government on this subject of great importance to
both countries." The statements came amid a wave of drug-related
violence that has claimed more than 1,500 lives this year across
Mexico, many in states on the U.S. border. The bloodshed, which is
attributed to rival gangs battling over smuggling routes into the
United States, has included beheadings, grenade attacks and
execution-style hits on several police chiefs.