COLOMBIA DRUGS SURGE TROUBLES US

The United States has said the area in Colombia used for coca crops grew by
almost 25% last year, despite an anti-drugs programme that has cost the US
$1 billion over the past two years.

Coca crops in Colombia, the world's largest producer of cocaine and the
main supplier of the drug in the US, grew to almost 170,000 hectares last
year, according to the US estimates.

The White House said the new figures were a source of concern, despite
acknowledging that the inclusion of an area not previously surveyed by
satellites was responsible for the increase.

"Nonetheless, the increase in cultivation is troubling. We recognise that
our efforts to date have not yet produced the results we had hoped to
achieve," a White House statement said.

The Colombian authorities disputed the figures, saying they managed to
reduce the area cultivated with coca to just under 145,000 hectares in
2001, which represented an 11% drop compared with the previous year.

Volatile situation

The White House stressed that it remained committed to helping Colombia
fight drug-production and trafficking, saying that the new figures
underlined the need for sustained US engagement.

It said the volatile security environment in Colombia was a major obstacle
to implementing effective counter-drug programmes.

Colombia is one of the main recipients of US aid, but under current law it
can only be used to tackle drug-traffickers, and not against the left-wing
rebels who the Americans consider to be terrorists.

However, the United States Congress has recently approved a proposal which
could expand US military involvement in the country.

Colombia is embroiled in a civil war that has lasted nearly 40 years - a
conflict in which more than 37,000 people have lost their lives.