On February 10 State Department official William Brownfield announced that Central America will receive an aid package of $200 million, intended to combat crime and drug trafficking in the region. According to the AFP, the aid will be delivered in coordination with bodies like the Organization of American States (OAS) and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).
Stratfor examines the oft-fudged statistic, cited at times by top U.S. officials, that 90 percent of the arms used by Mexican drug cartels comes from the U.S. That number comes from a report delivered to Congress in 2009, and concerns the number of weapons submitted by the Mexican government which the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) was able to trace. That is, 3,480 arms out of 4,000, or 90 percent.
On February 10, U.S. Director of National Intelligence (DNI) James Clapper called the drug-trafficking threat in Mexico the "number one priority" during a hearing held by House of Representatives, El Universal reports.
Ecuador will send 400 Colombian refugees to Canada under a United Nations (UN) program, reports La Hora. Ecuador reportedly hosts more than 50,000 officially recognized refugees, most of them escaping the Colombian conflict.
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