International
Peru to buy illegal coca crops to battle drug trafficking
AFP
Peru’s government has announced a plan to buy the nation’s entire supply of illegal coca leaf — the primary ingredient in cocaine — for at least a year, as part of its battle against drug trafficking.
The South American country is one of the world’s three largest producers of cocaine, alongside neighbors Colombia and Bolivia, according to the United Nations.
Peru currently produces an estimated 160,000 tons of coca leaf a year with 62,000 hectares of land dedicated to the crop.
But the vast majority of that, some 95 percent, is produced illegally and sold to drug-traffickers who turn it into about 400 tons of cocaine a year.
All legally grown coca must be sold to the state coca company ENACO but that amounts to only 2,500 tons a year.
Legal coca leaf producers are on a register that includes 95,000 growers. However, the government wants to create a new register for the other 400,000 unregistered producers.
“It is imperative, for at least a year, to buy coca leaf from existing registered producers and from those that will make up the newly created register,” Cabinet Chief Anibal Torres said on Wednesday when presenting the initiative.
The plan would also see the demilitarization of Peru’s main coca leaf growing valley, known by the acronym VRAEM.
Soldiers have been stationed in the south-central area since 2006, due to the continued presence of the Shining Path Maoist guerrilla movement, which is allied with drug trafficking groups.
Government opponents have criticized the new plan, saying it will increase drug trafficking.
“The message from the government is that it is legalizing coca leaf and it will buy illegal coca leaf. The message is grow coca, and that’s very dangerous because we are talking about a primary material used in drug trafficking,” former interior minister Ruben Vargas told AFP.
The coca leaf bought by ENACO is used to make sweets, herbal infusions, flour and for chewing like gum, which is an Andean tradition to help combat fatigue.
“By promoting the growing of coca leaf peasants will obviously have two markets: the state and drug traffickers,” added Vargas.
“It will cause immeasurable damage not just to the environment but also the governability of the country.”
Peru created the register of coca leaf producers in 1978 as part of a state policy to combat drug trafficking that also included the destruction of illegal crops.
Earlier this month, authorities began a weeks-long process of incinerating the 16.3 tons of illegal drugs already seized this year.
International
Missile attack hits Kharkiv homes, leaving 13 wounded
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Friday that a Russian missile attack on residential buildings in the eastern city of Kharkiv has left at least 13 people injured, according to local authorities.
“A horrific Russian attack on Kharkiv,” Zelensky wrote on Telegram, explaining that two missiles were fired, striking residential areas and causing “a number of casualties that is still being clarified.”
Local officials later confirmed that 13 people were injured in the attack, six of whom were hospitalized, including one woman in serious condition.
International
Sheinbaum evacuates National Palace after 6.5-magnitude earthquake hits Southern Mexico
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo evacuated the National Palace on Friday along with journalists and federal government staff after the seismic alert was activated during her morning press conference, triggered by a 6.5-magnitude earthquake with its epicenter in the south of the country.
The alert sounded while the president was speaking from the Treasury Hall, forcing the immediate interruption of the event and the activation of established safety protocols.
“Oh, it’s shaking,” Sheinbaum said as she noticed the tremor, before urging those present to remain calm.
According to preliminary information, the earthquake struck the state of Guerrero, one of Mexico’s most seismically active regions. The National Seismological Service (SSN) reported that the quake occurred at 7:58 a.m. local time (13:58 GMT).
Sheinbaum led the orderly evacuation of the historic building, accompanied by reporters covering the briefing and federal government personnel. Images released afterward show the president waiting in the central courtyard of the National Palace as she awaited guidance from Civil Protection authorities on whether it was safe to resume activities.
International
Canada’s prime minister Mark Carney to join Ukraine peace talks in Paris
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announced on Friday that he will take part in peace negotiations on Ukrainescheduled to be held in Paris on January 5 and 6.
In a statement, the Canadian government said the meeting will bring together countries belonging to the so-called Coalition of the Willing, and aims to “accelerate efforts toward a negotiated peace” in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, supported by robust security guarantees.
Carney said Canada is working closely with its allies to achieve a “just and lasting peace,” stressing that the Coalition of the Willing must both deter further aggression and reinforce security guarantees, while ensuring that Ukraine is able to rebuild, recover and lay the foundations for genuine prosperity.
The Coalition of the Willing is made up of around 30 countries, the vast majority of them European, all of which are allies of Kyiv.
On Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed that a meeting of the Coalition, alongside other European leaders, will take place in Paris on January 6, focusing on security guarantees for Ukraine in the event of a future peace agreement with Russia.
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Sheinbaum evacuates National Palace after 6.5-magnitude earthquake hits Southern Mexico
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