Source:
Miami HeraldPosted on Saturday, 03.21.09
U.S. eyes closer military ties with Mexico
The U.S. is trying to achieve closer ties with the Mexican military, but that may be difficult.
BY MARISA TAYLOR AND NANCY YOUSSEF
McClatchy News Service
WASHINGTON -- As the Pentagon eyes a bigger role in Mexico's drug war, the military's efforts to open the door to a new relationship with its southern neighbor risks alienating the Mexican military, which has long had a strained relationship with its counterpart, experts said.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates has called for improved relations with the Mexican military in response to escalating drug violence along the border and in Mexico. On Meet the Press earlier this month, the secretary said: ``We are beginning to be in a position to help the Mexicans more than we have in the past. Some of the old biases against cooperation between our militaries and so on I think are being set aside.''
Most experts, however, say any military role should be limited to sharing intelligence or training Mexican troops.
''It's a mistake to say that the United States is going to address this problem of security in Mexico by increasing the Pentagon's role,'' said Armand B. Peschard-Sverdrup, a senior associate with the Center for Strategic and International Studies. ``It only would perpetuate the dysfunctional relationship between the two countries.''
During a recent trip designed to expand U.S. Mexican-military relations, Adm. Michael Mullen, the highest-ranking U.S. military officer, visited the graves of American troops who died during the Mexican-American war of the 1840s. Although the gesture appeared innocuous, Mexico observers say the visit undercut the military's message that U.S. Mexican military tensions were a thing of the past.
Read more:
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/americas/story/960802.html
Printer-friendly format
Email this thread to a friend
Bookmark this thread
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
