U.S. to Throw More Money at Central America’s Drug War

At a regional conference this week, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton pledged almost $300 million to the governments of Central America during 2011 to aid in their efforts to oppose cartels and others involved in the region’s violent, illegal drug trade. The new assistance package is almost a 15 percent increase from last year’s aid. Neither Clinton nor the article below offered details on exactly how the money should or would be used, but it seems safe to assume most will be spent on police and military operations. —ARK

BBC:

Announcing the increased US funding, Mrs Clinton said Washington was committed to helping the region.

“Everyone knows the statistics, the murder rates surpassing civil war levels,” she said in remarks to the Central American Security Conference (SICA).

Mrs Clinton said funding to tackle transnational organised crime in the region would be increased from $260m in 2010 to almost $300m this year.

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