Mexico establishes drug and arms trafficking commission ahead of meeting with U.S. officials

By Kendal Blust
Published: Thursday, April 13, 2023 - 2:50pm
Updated: Thursday, April 13, 2023 - 2:51pm

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President Andrés Manuel López Obrador
Gobierno de México
Mexico's President Andrés Manuel López Obrador discusses a new anti-trafficking commission during his morning press conference on April 12, 2023.

On Thursday, Mexico’s security cabinet met with U.S. officials in Washington, D.C., to discuss migration and drug and firearm trafficking. Ahead of that meeting, Mexico established a new commission to address those issues.

Top Mexican officials who visited the White House said their priority is improving international collaboration to reduce fentanyl trafficking and overdose deaths, as well as to prevent firearms deaths in Mexico, which they say are driven by U.S.-made weapons smuggled into the country.

To help meet those goals, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador announced Wednesday that he has launched a new anti-trafficking commission.

Mexico’s Security Secretary Rosa Icela Rodriguez will head the group, which includes representatives from Mexican agencies working to combat drug and arms trafficking, such as the Army, Navy, health and foreign ministries, among others.

López Obrador, who established the special working group by presidential decree, said it will meet periodically to coordinate actions.