For the administration of President Joe Biden, preserving the security gains made by the Merida Initiative must be weighed and, where appropriate, offer an up-to-date approach to the needs of Mexico and the United States in this regard.
For the spokesman of the United States Department of State, Ned Price, the initiative that began in the government of President Vicente Fox helped Mexico to have a better professionalization of its anti-drug forces, as well as obtain international certifications in the fight against organized crime gangs.
“The Merida Initiative helped Mexico strengthen its law enforcement and counternarcotics capacity and has produced some important benefits. We want those achievements to be preserved, cooperation deepened, and we want an up-to-date approach to today’s threats, ”Price commented.
Lee: Ebrard assures that the Mérida Initiative is finished
“We believe that we must keep an up-to-date look at our bilateral security cooperation. We need an approach that addresses the concerns and priorities of both governments, “he added.
Tomorrow, the Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken, as well as the Secretary of the Department of National Security, Alejandro Mayorkas, will visit Mexico City, where they will hold a meeting with the security cabinet of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador.
The meetings will be headed by the federal president himself, as well as by Chancellor Marcelo Ebrard Casaubón.
This week, on a tour of Veracruz, the Secretary of Foreign Relations affirmed that the interventionist approach of the Merida Initiative was dead and that new ties of cooperation in security would be addressed with the United States, privileging legal advice and reciprocity in extraditions.
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