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 News from Around the Americas | October 2005 
Study: Bilateral Agenda Lopsided
 Wire services
Washington - US-Mexican discussions on security problems have focused on U.S. concerns without significantly dealing with Mexican problems, which has created a one-sided situation that should be corrected, according to a report.
While official discussions tend to lavish attention on fighting cross-border terrorism and narcotrafficking, both U.S. priorities, much less is said about combating local security threats that Mexico faces such as organized crime, gangs and street violence, the report said.
The answer is not to de-emphasize the U.S. interests but rather "to find new approaches that address security concerns of citizens of both countries," it said.
Titled "The United States and Mexico: Forging a Strategic Partnership," the report was prepared by the Wilson Center, a research group established by U.S. Congress, and the Mexican Council on Foreign Relations. It was released Tuesday.
The report said Mexico has little direct interest in international terrorism, and the United States feels the same way about public insecurity within Mexico except as it relates to drug trafficking and criminality at the border.
But the study contends that many requirements needed for combating one form of insecurity are also needed to fight the other.
"We suggest that strengthening law enforcement capabilities and cooperation between the two countries in dealing with organized crime (including drug smuggling and arms trafficking), could lead to cooperation against all forms of crime, including terrorism," the study said.
This convergence "can produce significant collateral benefits" in overcoming challenges that each country faces, the report added.
"A joint campaign against crime would likely be seen by citizens and politicians of both countries as in their best interests, and it could thus provide a useful nucleus around which to build other efforts related to security," the report said.
The study was written by a binational Working Group chaired by Ambassador Andr้s Rozental, president of the Mexican Council on Foreign Relations; and Dr. Peter H. Smith of the University of California, San Diego.
On other issues the report said: To remedy what it said has been a lack of high-level political leadership, the Mexican and U.S. presidents should meet frequently and hold annual fullscale summits.
The U.S. government should create a targeted guest worker program with a clear path to legalization for Mexicans already working in the United States without official documents.
The two countries should commission a bilateral task force to study and design an energy-for-infrastructure strategy. This "swap" would help develop the energy infrastructure of oil-rich Mexico while meeting the substantial energy needs of the United States. |
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