THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

FACT SHEET

U.S.-EU Caribbean Counternarcotics Cooperation

     Recognizing that drug production and trafficking in the 
     Caribbean pose a serious threat to the United States, Europe 
     and the Caribbean region itself, the U.S. Government and the 
     European Union plan to work together on combined 
     counternarcotics assistance projects for the Caribbean, 
     valued at approximately $l0 million per year.  Both the U.S. 
     and the EU plan to provide funding for various regional 
     activities in these broad areas:
     
     --   regional coordination of drug control efforts through 
          national drug commissions;
     
     --   strengthening of regional law enforcement capabilities, 
          including maritime enforcement;
     
     --   intelligence collection, analysis and sharing;
     
     --   improvement of drug control laws and adjudication 
          capabilities including witness security and assistance 
          in prosecuting difficult cases;
     
     --   assistance in the investigation and prosecution of 
          money laundering offenses;
     
     --   reduction of drug crops in the region;
     
     --   control of precursor and essential chemicals; and
     
     --   strengthening of drug demand reduction capabilities,  
          including epidemiological surveillance.
     
     U.S.-EU cooperation grew out of a United Nations Drug 
     Control Policy (UNDCP)-organized Caribbean regional meeting 
     in Barbados in May 1996.  In preparation for the meeting, an 
     EU expert team studied the drug problems in the Caribbean 
     and made a series of recommendations for remedial action.  
     The Barbados meeting succeeded in merging the EU 
     recommendations with those of the U.S., other donor nations, 
     other multinational organizations including the Organization 
     of American States/Commission Inter-americano para el 
     Control de Abuso de Drogas (OAS/CICAD), and the Caribbean 
     jurisdictions themselves to form a Caribbean Action Plan 
     containing 68 recommendations, which was adopted by the 
     meeting.  U.S.-EU cooperative efforts will assist Caribbean 
     jurisdictions in implementing the Action Plan.
     
     U.S.-EU activities will also be coordinated with those of 
     other donors including UNDCP and OAS/CICAD.  Assistance will 
     be focused on strengthening existing Caribbean drug control 
     institutions for maximum long-term sustainability.

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