Crs Report for Congress: Mexico-U.S. Relations: Issues for Congress May 13, 2009 - Rl32724

The United States and Mexico have a close and complex bilateral relationship, with extensive economic linkages as neighbors and partners under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Bilateral relations are close, and characterized by extensive commercial and cultural ties and cooperation on a range of bilateral and international issues. A current bilateral dispute involves the implementation of NAFTA trucking provisions. In March 2009, Congress terminated a pilot-project for Mexican-registered trucks to operate beyond the border commercial zone, and Mexico responded by imposing import tariffs on over 90 U.S. agricultural and industrial products. Drug trafficking issues are prominent in relations since Mexico is the leading transit country for cocaine, a leading supplier of methamphetamine and heroin, and the leading foreign supplier of marijuana. Shortly after taking office in December 2006, President Felipe Caldern launched operations against Mexican drug trafficking organizations. He has sent thousands of soldiers and federal police to drug trafficking hot-spots, and is contending with a significant escalation of drug violence, particularly in several border states and communities. U.S.-Mexican cooperation on drug trafficking has intensified over the past several years. Both countries announced the Mrida Initiative in October 2007 to combat drug trafficking and organized crime. To date, …