Drug War

The government's strategy for stopping the production and the trafficking of cocaine and heroin destined for the United States suffers from a lack of interagency coordination, poor management of funds, and a lack of commitment from some foreign governments to combat the drug trade in their countries. Although the United States has changed its international strategy on cocaine from law enforcement and drug seizures in the transit zone to stopping drugs in the source countries, the executive branch has had difficulty implementing a key part of the strategy--shifting resources from the transit zone to source countries. Also, a proposed heroin strategy still awaits the President's approval. Moreover, the willingness and the ability of foreign governments to fight the drug trade in their countries varies. Recent steps taken by the government of Colombia, such as the arrests of three high-level members of the Cali Cartel, have been positive, but continuing commitment is needed. Even when foreign governments are willing to fully participate in counternarcotics efforts, they often lack the necessary resources. Extensive corruption in some countries further weakens efforts to counter the drug trade.