Bolivia's Morales asks bloc to condemn US on drugs [View All]

HAVANA—Bolivian President Evo Morales said on Monday that a regional South American bloc should "decertify" the U.S. in its counternarcotics efforts, hitting back at Washington's criticism of his South American nation on drugs.

Speaking in Cuba while receiving an honorary doctorate from the University of Havana, Morales accused the United States of being the root cause of the international drug trade as a leading consumer of cocaine.

"If the United States can certify or decertify, why can't UNASUR (the Union of South American Nations) decertify the United States if the origin of drug trafficking is U.S. consumption of cocaine?" Morales said.

Washington first put Bolivia on its blacklist of nations that "failed demonstrably" to meet counterdrug obligations in 2008, and again renewed the designation last week. Venezuela and Burma are also on the list, which allows for possible sanctions, though President Barack Obama waived any penalties for Venezuela and Bolivia so the U.S. can support programs it says aim to help those nations' people.

Read more: http://www.boston.com/news/world/latinamerica/articles/2011/09/19/bolivias_morales_asks_bloc_to_condemn_us_on_drugs