U.S. may arm agents in Mexico
Report on drug fight says dispute is resolved

By David LaGesse / of The Dallas Morning News

WASHINGTON Mexico has agreed to allow U.S. drug enforcement agents in
Mexico to carry weapons while they're on duty, officially resolving a
thorny dispute between the two countries.

The agreement by Mexico is revealed in the draft of a report to Congress
on progress between the two countries in fighting trafficking. The
report is expected to be released by the Clinton administration on
Tuesday.

"The safety and security of U.S. personnel in this and other
counternarcoticsrelated cooperative activities in Mexico is a matter of
primary concern to the administration," said the report, prepared under
the direction of U.S. drug czar Barry McCaffrey.

Under the agreement, Mexico would allow the United States to assign drug
agents to U.S. consulates in Mexico. Those Drug Enforcement
Administration agents could then carry weapons as part of their official
duties, a Mexican government official said.

That falls short of the blanket immunity sought by the DEA, which would
allow U.S. agents to carry weapons at their discretion.

The agreement is likely to be controversial in Mexico. Last week,
opposition parties and even members of President Ernesto Zedillo's
ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party took issue with his foreign
minister over what they said was the government's submissive attitude
toward U.S. pressures in the drug fight.

In Mexico City on Monday, a government official, while preparing for
Mexico's highly nationalistic Independence Day ceremonies on Tuesday,
denied that any weapons agreement had been made.

"That is false," he said. "The Mexican government has never accepted the
carrying of weapons by DEA agents in Mexican territory, and has not
changed its position. It's not even open to debate."

The Clinton administration analysis also highlights Mexican cooperation
in other areas seen as domestically sensitive for Mr. Zedillo. The
report describes numerous examples of Mexican and U.S. military units
operating together against traffickers cooperation once considered
impossible and a new willingness on the part of Mexico to accommodate
U.S. demands for criminal extraditions.

The fact that Mr. Zedillo has taken the steps is evidence of Mexico's
increased cooperation, a Clinton administration official said.

The report is unlikely to satisfy congressional critics, who say Mexico
still has failed to arrest prominent drug kingpins and that the flow of
drugs through Mexico appears unchecked.

President Clinton agreed to provide the report on bilateral cooperation
after certifying in March that Mexico was fully cooperating in the fight
against trafficking. The assessment came during the annual process of
certifying U.S. allies in the antidrug effort.

Some congressional leaders sharply criticized Mexico's antidrug efforts
as insufficient and sought to overturn Mr. Clinton's assessment.
Decertifying Mexico would have limited the ability of the United States
to aid Mexico, and the ensuing debate created friction between the two
countries.

The largely upbeat draft report describes some problems in Mexico.
"Corruption and impunity in Mexico have not ended; counternarcotics
resources are sometimes scarce; and historical factors still hinder
cooperation at operational levels," it stated.

But Mexico's transition to a more democratic government is helping the
drug fight, the administration report said. Mexico has made a number of
legal changes, including making money laundering a crime and allowing
more aggressive law enforcement tactics, such as wiretapping.

Although the report points out problems in Mexico, particularly with
official corruption, it emphasizes the effort of Mr. Zedillo to overcome
those problems, the Mexican government official said.

"The report makes clear the political will in Mexico to address these
issues," the official said.

Earlier this year, Mexico's attorney general announced he was
dismantling the corrupt federal police units that were charged with the
antitrafficking effort.

He acted after the embarrassing arrest of a top Mexican drug enforcement
official, Gen. Jesus Gutierrez Rebollo, in February on charges of taking
trafficker payoffs.

Mr. Gutierrez's arrest was particularly awkward because of Mexico's
decision to temporarily increase the role of its military in the
counterdrug fight.

Still, militarytomilitary cooperation between the two countries, which
was nearly nonexistent in 1995, has increased significantly.

Mexico's navy for the first time has cooperated in maritime operations
with the U.S. Coast Guard, including the deployment of U.S. detection
teams as part of ship boardings by Mexican naval forces, the report
said.

Just last month, Mexican aircraft worked side by side with a U.S. cutter
and aircraft to track suspected traffickers that were later pursued by
three Mexican navy vessels.

The traffickers escaped, but dumped more than 2.7 tons of cocaine
recovered by the Mexicans.

Intelligence sharing between the two countries has expanded
significantly, including a secure line established between agents at the
U.S. embassy and a leading Mexican antidrug agency, the report said.
Shared information helped the Mexican army seize a tanker truck
containing almost 10 tons of cocaine in April one of the largest
cocaine seizures ever.

Members of Congress sharply criticized Mexico for not extraditing more
fugitives to the United States, which they say differs from a U.S.
policy of returning criminals wanted in Mexico.

In response, Mexico has agreed to extradite more criminals but under
current Mexican law, extradition must wait until they have served
sentences there. The passage of time would make U.S. convictions
difficult.

So Mexico early this year suggested a new agreement to allow "temporary
extraditions" of fugitives for trial in each other's country. The
fugitives then would return to the country where they were captured to
first complete prison terms there.

Negotiations on a specific agreement continue, according to the
administration report.

The two nations, however, also struggle to get into operation special
crossborder enforcement squads. One stumbling block was the dispute
over U.S. drug enforcement agents carrying weapons on Mexican soil.

Mexican officials had agreed to look the other way, but U.S. Drug
Enforcement officials demanded an explicit agreement.

Staff writer Laurence Iliff in Mexico City contributed to this
report.