POTUS CODEL, ATTORNEY GENERAL'S OFFICE EXCHANGE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 MEXICO 001197

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PGOV KCRM SNAR KJUS MX
SUBJECT: POTUS CODEL, ATTORNEY GENERAL'S OFFICE EXCHANGE
VIEWS ON CALDERON'S ANTI-CRIME EFFORTS


1. (U) Summary. Representatives from the Mexican Attorney
General's (PGR) Office met with a group of U.S. Congressional
members traveling with POTUS April 16 to discuss challenges
in the GOM's efforts to combat organized crime. They
stressed the importance of trust between the U.S. and Mexico
in taking on organized crime and requested the U.S. do more
to obstruct the flow of weapons into Mexico from the U.S.
The Congressional members praised the GOM's efforts and
assured the PGR officials they would step up efforts to
address their concerns about arms trafficking. End Summary.


2. (U) A group of Congressional members traveling with
POTUS on his trip to Mexico April 16-17 included Sen. Max
Baucus (Montana),Rep. Javier Becerra (CA),Rep. Sam Farr
(CA),Rep. Kendrick Meek (FL),Rep. Charlie Rangel (NY),Rep.
Ciro Rodriguez (TX),and Rep. Nydia Velasquez (NY). The
group of PGR officials that met with the Congressional
members consisted of Marsela Morales Ibanez, Deputy Attorney
General; Irving Barrios Mojica, General Coordinator for the
Speciailized Unit of Investigations of Crimes Against Health;
Adrian Franco Zevada, International Affairs Coordinator;
Leopoldo Velardo, General Director for Extraditions and Legal
Assistance; Ariel Moutsatso Morales, Special Advisor to the
Attorney General; and Oscar Rocha Dabrowski, Special Advisor
to the Attorney General.


3. (SBU) Special Advisor Rocha described the great strides
the U.S. and Mexico had made in terms of cooperation in
combating organized crime. The unprecedented cooperation
between our two countries had produced major achievements
both in terms of record seizures and the arrests of major
crime figures. Trust was key. The PGR was implementing a
strict and comprehensive vetting program of its own people.
All of those attending the meeting with the Congressional
members had been administered a polygraph test. He noted
that the Attorney General's former deputy had been arrested
for ties to organized crime, an event that hurt PGR morale at
the time but reinforced how serious the government was about
cleaning house.


4. (SBU) In response to Sen. Baucus' question about how
President Calderon's efforts were playing politically and
what the U.S. could do to support him, Rocha made two points.


-- First, he noted that Calderon was under pressure to show
results. Sustained levels of high violence raised questions
about the efficacy of his program. Some segments of the
Mexican publie, he said, even suggested it was time for the
government to strike an agreement with the cartels. This was
unthinkable for law enforcement officials involved in this
fight. Calderon's unwavering commitment to turn back the
tide of organized crime and transform Mexico into a "normal"
country was inspiring for them.

-- Second, Mexico blamed the high levels of violence seen
across the country on the flow of weapons entering Mexico
from the U.S. Two-thirds of the weapons seized in Mexico are
assault weapons brought in from the U.S. If the U.S. wanted
to demonstrate its support for Mexico and President Calderon,
the best thing it could do would be to stop the flow of
weapons across the border. At the end, Mexico couldn't speak
to whether the U.S. needed to enact new legislation, or if
instead, more effective implementation of existing
legislation was the answer. That was for the U.S. decide.
The U.S. Congressional members signaled they were prepared to
do more on this issue mainly through dedicating greater
resources; they indicated adopting new legislation including
on assault weapons would face serious opposition and wasn't
presently on the table. Sen. Baucus suggested the GOM invite
NRA representatives to Mexico in an effort to sensitize them
to the challenges Mexico is facing and seek their support;
the Mexican representatives indicated that had already
extended an invitation but had not received a response.


5. (SBU) Rep. Rangel signaled his own opposition to the
legalization of drugs and asked where Mexico stood on this
issue. Rocha suggested that movement in some U.S. states
towards the legalization marijuana sent Mexico mixed signals.
Half of the proceeds of cartels trafficking drugs into the
U.S. came from marijuana sales. Mexico would like to see the
U.S. do more to crack down on marijuana trafficking.


6. (SBU) Comment. Mexico's PGR representatives spoke well
to the importance the GOM attaches to cooperation with the
U.S. in efforts to combat organized crime. They recognize
building trust between our two countries is essential.
Mexico has made significant strikes in fighting corruption
but is not out of the woods yet. It appreciates U.S. support
and looks forward to the day when cooperation and trust will

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be routine components of our relationship.


7. (U) POTUS CODEL members did not have an opportunity to
clear on this message before their departure.

Visit Mexico City's Classified Web Site at
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/wha/mexicocity and the North American
Partnership Blog at http://www.intelink.gov/communities/state/nap /
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