No anti-drugs pact with US
2008-08-31 22:53
Caracas - Venezuela on Sunday rejected US requests to resume co-operation in the war on drugs, insisting it has made progress despite an alleged fourfold-gain in the amount of Colombian cocaine now passing through its territory.
In the latest barb-trading over the issue, Venezuela dismissed US attempts to renew talks on drugs as "useless and inopportune", saying US officials should focus on slashing demand for drugs at home rather than blaming setbacks on the alleged lack of co-operation of other nations.
"The anti-drug fight in Venezuela has shown significant progress during recent years, especially since the government ended official co-operation programmes with the DEA," Venezuela's foreign ministry said in a statement.
President Hugo Chavez suspended co-operation with the US Drug Enforcement Agency in August 2005, accusing its agents of espionage.
Wave of flights
Since then, Venezuela has refused to help US officials combat drug trafficking, White House drug czar John Walters said.
US law enforcement has detected a wave of flights that depart Venezuela and drop large loads of cocaine off the Caribbean island of Hispaniola, while other multi-ton loads are moved by boat and air to west Africa - a way station for shipments to Europe, Walters said.
Walters claims the flow of Colombian cocaine through Venezuela has quadrupled since 2004, reaching an estimated 282 tons last year.
Venezuela's government says it is seizing more illegal drugs than ever before, boosting enforcement along its 2 200km border with Colombia and stepping up efforts to weed corrupt officials from security forces.
- AP