BUSH REQUEST FOR ANTI-DRUG AID CUT

WASHINGTON - Congress is ready to cut more than $100 million from the Bush
administration's request for counternarcotics programs in the Andes,
congressional aides said.

Opponents of President Bush (news - web sites)'s $731 million request cited
problems with the programs including human rights abuses by soldiers, fear
of deepening U.S. involvement in South American jungles and skepticism over
the programs' effectiveness.

Under a tentative agreement by House-Senate conferees, Colombia's military
would have to improve its human rights record to receive any money. Also,
the United States would have to offer alternative crops to farmers in areas
where drug crops are to be fumigated, said the aides, who spoke Thursday on
condition they not be identified.

Conferees have settled in recent weeks on $625 million, effectively
splitting the difference between the $676 million in the House foreign aid
bill and the Senate version's $567 million.

Under the compromise, the State Department also would have the option of
transferring $35 million from other foreign anti-drug programs.

The State Department said it was premature to comment on the House-Senate
agreement since it hasn't been presented publicly, and State experts
haven't had a chance to review it.

Negotiators hope to work out differences on the overall foreign aid bill
before Congress adjourns in a couple of weeks. The House had approved $15.2
billion in July, the Senate $15.6 billion in October.

Sen. Bob Graham (news - bio - voting record), D-Fla., who opposed the
Senate bill because of the reduced Andean aid, expects to vote for the
compromise, said his spokesman, Paul Anderson.

"It doesn't go as far as he would like, but it's clearly an improvement
over the amount in the Senate bill," he said.

Supporters of the administration proposal said full $731 million funding
was necessary to maintain pressure on traffickers after last year's $1.3
billion Colombian aid program. Most of that money was for helicopters and
training of Colombia's military and police forces.

About half the new proposal is aimed at helping Colombia's neighbors keep
the drug trade from spilling into their countries. Colombia is the world's
leading producer of cocaine and the main source of heroin sold in the
United States.

Many lawmakers have become skeptical about the Andean drug fight. They
worry about the Colombian military's links to rights abuses and the
possibility the United States could be drawn into Colombia's guerrilla war.
They also question whether the aid will reduce drug use in the United States.

Additionally, they complain that money appropriated in last year's $1.3
billion package still hasn't been spent.

Last year's package required Colombia's military to meet human rights
standards before it could receive U.S. assistance. It also included a
national security waiver that former President Clinton (news - web sites)
invoked to provide the aid even though the conditions were not met.

House-Senate negotiators agreed to conditions that aren't as strict as
previous standards but also allow no waivers, the aides said.

The new conditions require that the State Department certify that
Colombia's military suspends soldiers linked to right-wing paramilitaries,
and the military cooperates with civilian courts.

Lawmakers also put new restrictions on U.S.-financed aerial drug spraying
in Colombia. Farmers complain that spraying has destroyed legal crops, hurt
livestock and caused health problems. U.S. officials say the herbicide,
glyphosate, is carefully targeted and causes no serious problems.

The conferees would give the State Department six months to set up
alternative crop programs in areas to be sprayed. It also requires that the
spraying meet U.S. and Colombian safety standards.