US Embassy peeved

[NewsWhore]

The US Embassy in Santo Domingo said that allegations by Dominican officials that the US government is not sincere in its fight against the illegal drug trade are "worrisome and offensive," as reported in Diario Libre. In recent days Dominican officials, including Luis Manuel Bonetti, have criticized US officials for a "lack" of help in fighting drugs. An unnamed source at the Embassy told the newspaper that surveillance boats and planes that cost US$4,000 per hour, a US$1.5 million investment in x-ray equipment to detect drugs in large shipments as well as the donation of four boats worth US$7.5 million as proof of the US commitment. The US Embassy has also provided US$11.7 million in funds to help strengthen the DR's judiciary system. Last week Bonetti said that the US government was more concerned with stopping illegal entries into the US, than helping fight the drug trade. Bonetti made his comments after the bodies of seven men were discovered in Bani a drug-related incident. In a statement to Diario Libre the Embassy explains those allegations ignore the large investment the US makes in logistical and operational programs to fight drugs. The Embassy says the comments also disregard the numerous lives that have been saved while trying to get from the DR to Puerto Rico on illegal trips.
The president of the National Drug Control Department (DNCD), General Rafael Ramirez Ferreira is in favor of a Caribbean Plan, similar to the well known Plan Colombia or Merida Initiative that bring US resources to aid Colombia and Mexican authorities fight against the country's powerful drug cartels and organized crime networks.

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