MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Unasur agrees to create a council to combat drugs’ trade

Less dependence from the US, promotes Minister Alfredo Rada

Security ministers from the Union of South American Nations, Unasur, agreed to the creation of a South American Council to Combat Drugs Trafficking, announced Bolivia’s Home Secretary in an official release from La Paz.

Minister Alfredo Rada said the decision was taken over the weekend during ministerial meetings of Unasur members’ representatives held in Montevideo, Uruguay.

“We also ratified that operations in border areas made possible through bi-national agreements are the most successful and practical way of advancing towards the regionalization of the drugs trade combat”, added Rada.

Rada who was selected to be the spokesperson of the meeting said that Mercosur ministers from Argentina, Chile, Brazil, Paraguay, Bolivia and Uruguay were present as well as delegates from Colombia, Venezuela and Ecuador.

The task of organizing the Council to Combat Drugs Trafficking is the responsibility of Ecuadorian Interior minister Gustavo Jalkh, since Ecuador currently occupies the pro tempore presidency of Unasur.

Rada also revealed that South American countries are considering the possibility of establishing a special fund to combat the drugs trade, although this initiative is still under consideration by the different countries.

The administration of Bolivian president Evo Morales is intent in having the fight against drugs and drugs trafficking become a regional policy, so Latinamerica can decouple from United States dependency in this area.

Morales has accused the US of promoting drugs and narcotics trade as an instrument to interfere in South American affairs and spy on regional governments. Since President Morales, a former leader of coca planters in Bolivia, took office he expelled the US Drugs Enforcement Agency, DEA, and the US ambassador.

Bolivia recently announced it had decided to purchase six aircrafts from China for monitoring drugs related activities and has been promised six helicopters for the same purpose from Brazil.