Mexico, U.S., Italy: The Cocaine Connection

U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey announced Sept. 17 that an international drug interdiction operation involving law enforcement in the United States, Italy, Canada, Mexico and Guatemala had netted more than 500 organized crime members involved in the cocaine trade. The announcement highlighted the Italian-Mexican cocaine connection. Traditionally, Colombia has been the world's cocaine provider, but while the Andes are still the production heartland for cocaine, Mexico is emerging as a rising player on the business and distribution side. With greater transnational activity comes a higher profile, which will lead law enforcement all over the world to pay more attention to Mexico.