US Attorney General Barr was in Mexico today for a meeting on security between Mexican and United States authorities that followed up on his December 5, 2019 visit.
The meeting was attended for Mexico by the Secretaries of Security, Alfonso Durazo; Foreign Affairs, Marcelo Ebrard; Interior, Olga Sánchez Cordero; Defense, General Luis Crescencio Sandoval; and the Navy, Admiral José Rafael Ojeda Durán; by the legal counsel for the presidency, Julio Scherer; the Undersecretary of Public Security, Ricardo Mejía; the head of the Financial Intelligence Unit, Santiago Nieto; Defense Ministry Chief of Staff, General Homero Mendoza Ruiz; Navy Chief of Staff, Admiral Rosendo Escalante Ilizaliturri; Attorney General Carlos Romero Aranda; and the Secretary General of the National Intelligence Center, Francisco Acuña Méndez.
The United States delegation was headed by US Attorney General William Barr; Ambassador Christopher Landau; Deputy Assistant Attorney General Bruce Swartz; Deputy Chief of Mission at the US embassy in Mexico, John Creamer; Chief of Staff to the Attorney General, Brian Rabbitt; and the legal attaché at the US embassy in Mexico, John Capinen.
The two sides discussed the progress made on arms trafficking, in a cordial and respectful manner, and analyzed the use of non-intrusive technology at key points on the border to stop ammunition and arms from entering our country. They agreed on a common binational program to reduce the trafficking in arms, drugs and financial resources done by transnational crime networks on land, sea, ports and airports, based on an understanding of organized crime as economic organizations whose finances must be attacked. They agreed to treat fentanyl as a common problem. They also discussed binational cooperation for reducing drug use and combating addictions.
The Government of Mexico reaffirms its commitment to dialogue and cooperation in order to face together the complex problems that, due to their transnational nature, can only be successfully resolved jointly.