U.S. REPORT WARNS ON COLOMBIA DRUGS

BOGOTA - Colombia's cocaine and heroin production is set to rise by
as much as 50 percent as the U.S.-backed drug war flounders due
largely to the growing strength of Marxist rebels, according to a U.S.
government report.

The projection is a severe setback for the United States, which
funneled a record $280 million in counternarcotics aid to Colombia
this year, making it the third-biggest recipient of U.S. aid worldwide.

"Active insurgent groups and their growing involvement in
drugtrafficking activities over the past several years are
complicating Colombiats ability to reduce drugtrafficking," the U.S.
General Accounting Office said in a report to Congress issued last
week.

"The cocaine threat from Colombia has worsened since 1996," the report
said.