Today, Jim Carroll, Deputy Director of National Drug Control Policy, Admiral Karl Schultz, Commandant of the United States Coast Guard, and senior officials from the Departments of State and Defense and the United States Agency for International Development traveled to Colombia to meet with Colombian President Ivan Duque and other high-ranking Colombian officials. This visit is part of an ongoing series of engagements between the United States and Colombian governments to strengthen ties and increase cooperation on many fronts, including combating the troubling spike in coca cultivation and increased cocaine production in Colombia. The trip also serves as an opportunity to recognize the hard work and extraordinary efforts of the Colombian police and military to eradicate coca, seize and destroy cocaine, and dismantle narco-trafficking organizations.
“Colombia is an important ally of the United States and we appreciate President Duque’s statements in support of aggressive action to combat cocaine production and trafficking,” Carroll said. “The United States is making unprecedented investments in reducing the demand for drugs through treating addiction, supporting recovery, and preventing drug use from beginning, and we will continue to work closely with the Colombian government to address this problem.”