Drug Trafficking Bolivia

In an escalation of the drug war in South America, U.S. agents have launched a new coordinated attack against a network of cocaine laboratories in the Bolivian jungle, provoking threats of retaliation against the American-led teams, U.S. officials said Thursday. The offensive, including nighttime raids with inflatable boats in alligator-infested rivers, targets new processing plants believed responsible for an estimated one-fourth of Bolivia's burgeoning cocaine production.

In the war on drugs, no one in this capital wants to be on the wrong side. But a stubborn squabble between Congress and the Bush Administration this week halted deliveries of weapons both sides agree are crucial to the fight. At issue is a fleet of helicopters slated for the front line in a new U.S.-backed assault against drug traffickers in South America. In the mountainous terrain where coca-growers thrive, the whirlybirds often can be the only way to get around.

The Cartagena summit marked important progress toward harmonizing the once-disparate drug policies of the United States and the three cocaine-producing countries of South America, as well as reinforcing their resolve to fight cocaine traffic together, Latin American officials said Friday. "The results were precisely what we needed, a more aggressive commitment by all of the countries here," said Gen. Miguel Maza Marquez, the commander of Colombia's intelligence police.

President Bush flew here for his much-heralded summit with three Latin American presidents Thursday and proclaimed after about three hours of meetings that the four nations have formed "the first anti-drug cartel." An 11-page "Declaration of Cartagena" signed by Bush and the presidents of Colombia, Bolivia and Peru said that fighting drug traffic requires effective efforts to reduce demand for drugs in consuming countries and to stimulate economic development in producing countries.

The Bush Administration has completed a drug summit agreement with three South American countries, committing the United States to economic and military aid to counteract the Latin nations' economic reliance on drugs, an official said. In addition to the $423-million anti-drug package President Bush is proposing for Peru, Bolivia and Colombia, the Administration will pledge to help track illegal export of U.S.-produced firearms and crack down on drug-related chemical exports.

The United States and the three Andean nations have agreed on the outlines of an anti-drug plan to be unveiled at next week's summit in Colombia, but the plan may not provide the immediate economic assistance that the South American countries had hoped for, Bush Administration officials said Wednesday. A communique to be signed by President Bush and the Andean leaders would express their common determination to replace cocaine commerce in the region with a legitimate economy.

Former Interior Minister Luis Arce Gomez was flown to Miami on Monday for trial on charges of trafficking in drugs while he served in the Cabinet of a former Bolivian military president. He has been accused of leading a cocaine trafficking operation while he was Bolivia's top law enforcement official.

The presidents of South America's three principal cocaine-producing countries on Tuesday invited President Bush to a summit within 90 days to forge joint strategies in the "frontal assault" on drug trafficking, and Bush quickly accepted the proposal. Bush expressed his willingness to take part shortly after word of the proposal by Presidents Alan Garcia of Peru, Jaime Paz Zamora of Bolivia and Virgilio Barco Vargas of Colombia reached the White House, spokesman Marlin Fitzwater said. "We accept.

In the South American war against cocaine traffic, Colombia is only one of many strategic theaters where traffickers enjoy a big advantage over anti-drug forces. Even if authorities could win the battle in Colombia, they could still lose the war. New U.S. aid for South America, proposed this week by President Bush, is unlikely by itself to improve bleak prospects for stopping cocaine at its origins.

Two bombs rocked Colombia's cocaine capital Tuesday night minutes after President Bush ended a televised speech unveiling a tough new anti-drug strategy. Within half an hour of Bush's speech, which was broadcast live on Colombian television, seven people were injured by bombs at two banks in Medellin, the radio network Caracol reported.