Colombia’s foreign minister said that the country’s success in combating drug trafficking has led cartels to move to other Latin American countries, and offered the government’s cooperation in reducing the presence of traffickers in these countries.
Foreign Minister Maria Angela Holguin said that she discussed this theme with her Argentine counterpart, Hector Timerman, during a visit to Buenos Aires mid-month, in light of the significant number of Colombian drug traffickers appearing in Argentina.
“Our success in the fight against drug trafficking causes those cartels to go to other countries. And in that we are offering all of the cooperation and collaboration that is required,” said Holguin in an interview, Spanish press agency EFE reported Thursday.
The minister also discussed the worldwide debate over legalizing drug consumption, stating that the eventual decision regarding the matter must be a global one, because “is it very difficult for a policy in this regard to be made individually.” She said that countries where the drugs are produced, such as Colombia, currently gain nothing from the high consumption rates, and that “a debate between producers, consumers and countries of transit” of drugs is necessary.
Holguin ended by stating that Colombia’s current foreign policy is one “of respect, of cooperation, and is efficient.”
