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Guardian, Comment is Free, Mexico

A Mexican muddle

The US has no choice but to develop a constructive and supportive relationship with southern neighbour

Mexico and the United States share the problems of violence and drug trafficking just as they share the other problems and benefits of such a close relationship. Understanding of the issues involved in bilateral Mexican–US relations can boost a politician's career. In 1997, William Weld even gave up the governership of Massachusetts for the chance to be appointed ambassador to Mexico. John Negroponte was ambassador to Mexico and subsequently rose to become the first Director of National Intelligence. The current Director of National Intelligence, however, has shown himself to be rather less adroit.

In two appearances before the select committee Dennis Blair triggered alarm bells when he said that "Mexico City" was losing control of its territory. Most people assume he meant the government of Mexico and not the City of Mexico, but, as Carlos Ramirez, a Mexican political analyst has noted, Blair has not clarified.

Blair's fudged comments elicited a sharp response from the Mexican president, Felipe Calderon Hinojosa, who called the director's accusations "absolutely false and absurd". Calderon challenged Blair to come and see for himself. "But don't just come here on holiday," he said, "That is what most Mexico analysts seem to do."

Calderon added: "We suffer from being situated next to the largest consumer of drugs in the world and the world's biggest arms dealer." Echoing Calderon's accusation at the Elliot School of International affairs at George Washington University, the Mexican ambassador, Arturo Sarukhan, said there are 12,000 shops along the border on the US side where drug dealers can buy guns.

The result is that the US is arming the drug cartels, and not only that. Fernando Gómez Mont, the interior minister, and Patricia Espinoza, the secretary of foreign affairs, both point out that corrupt elements in the DEA and US Border Patrol are currently impelling the drugs trade forward.

Now the Obama administration seems to have taken a step back and its attitude has become rather more conciliatory. Obama sounded unenthusiastic in response to a request by the Governor Perry of Texas to deploy the national guard along the frontier. Obama said he would study the proposal, but that the US had a big frontier with Mexico and that he was not interested in militarising it. In contrast to the comments of Dennis Blair, US air force general Victor Renuart said last Tuesday that he didn't consider Mexico was losing the fight against drug traffickers and that progress was being made against corruption.

In recent decades the US has recognised the vital importance of developing good relations with Mexico. The Nafta trade agreement was ratified in 1992 and in 1995 Bill Clinton came to the aid of Mexico with a successful multibillion financial rescue package. Even Bush made a valiant attempt to help solve the seemingly intractable problem of illegal immigration by trying to regularise the status of illegal immigrants through a guest worker scheme.

But now it is the turn of the Obama government to be constructive and show its good will. Mexico has taken on the drug traffickers. It needs the US to take full responsibility for its share of the problem and help Mexico combat the drug trade.

The US might blow hot and cold about its special relationship with Britain, but it has no choice but to develop a constructive and supportive relationship with Mexico.

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