MEXICAN DIPLOMAT REJECTS US "CERTIFICATION" IN DRUG WAR

A chief Mexican diplomat said Tuesday that US
"certification" for countries fighting drug trafficking
"has no legal status" but he welcomed the recent
decision to renew the status to Mexico.

"We reject any unilateral action from any country
whatsoever, not only on drug trafficking, but on Human
Rights," said Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister Sergio
Gonzalez Galvez in Vienna. He was referring to US sanctions
almost levelled at Mexico earlier this month for not
cooperating with US antinarcotic efforts. They were
stalled by a vote in the US senate March 20 which
reaffirmed the country's "certification" provided it
shows evidence later this year it is stepping up its war
on illicit drugs.

"Finally the sensible reaction of the Senate has stopped
this internal process of socalled certification," Gonzalez
told journalists

"This process has no legal status as far as Mexico is
concerned," he said.

According to US officials, 70 percent of the illegal
drugs consumed in the United States enter the country
through Mexico.

An estimated 12.8 million US residents consume illegal
drugs, spending an estimated 49 billion on them, US
officials report.

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