Mex. Official: U.S. Needs To Work With Us
"As most things in life, you need two to tango," Saruhkan said on Face The Nation Sunday. "As Mexico shuts down the flow of drugs into Mexico from South America [on their way to the U.S.], we need the support of the United States to slow down weapons and bulk cash."
The ambassador said it appears that President Obama and his administration are "seized" by the importance of the war against drug cartels being waged along the U.S.-Mexico border, as proven by the recent visits to Mexico by Secretary of State Clinton, Homeland Security Secretary Napolitano and Attorney General Holder.
"I think they've started to push the ball in the right direction," Saruhkan said of Washington. "The key issue right now is how can the United States help to shut down those guns and shut down that bulk cash that is providing the drug syndicates in Mexico with the wherewithal to corrupt, bribe, to kill."
Schieffer asked if the placement of U.S. National Guard troops along the border would help the situation.
Sarukhan said that the Obama administration's move to "ratchet up" ATF and ICE agents in the border region may be more effective than National Guard troops, "because these two agencies are charged with interdicting the assault weapons and bulk cash." He added that they "should play more of a role" along the border.
More from Face The Nation (4.12.09):
To watch Mexican Ambassador Arturo Sarukhan discuss the violent drug war raging on the U.S.-Mexico border, click on the video player below.
To watch a roundtable discussion of America's international role with the Washington Post's Rajiv Chandrasekaran, David Sanger of The New York Times and Syndicated Columnist Kathleen Parker, click on the video player below.