En la Boca del Lobo, In the Mouth of the Wolf

This monograph examines the US military involvement in the "drug war" since l989, as well as some of the issues that the military officer may have to deal with while conducting counterdrug operations in Peru. In 1989, the Secretary of Defense issued guidance to the armed services identifying drug trafficking as a national security problem. This guidance also established that the Department of Defense (DOD) would play a key role in combating this problem. Since that time, the US military has become increasingly involved with the war on drugs. Located on the western coast of South America, the country of Peru is extremely poor; one of the few exports it does have of any monetary consequence is coca. Peru not only produces more coca leaves than any other country it is also the major refiner of coca paste into cocaine base. Although Colombians control a sizable portion of the cocaine processing, there are indications that the Peruvians are developing their own cocaine refining operations. Cocaine is a stimulant, categorized as "one of the most threatening drugs to US society." Although coca has been in use since antiquity in Peru it is only since the 1970's that it became an exported crop. This transformation of coca as a cash crop along with the increased demand for cocaine in the United States led to higher production of cocaine. The connection between Peruvian insurgent groups such as the Sendero Luminoso (Shining Path) and narcotraffickers is a difficult one to prove conclusively. Both parties operate illegally and the details of their internal operations are not readily available. The Sendero Luminoso levy a tax on coca incomes to gain capital, but this is not excessive. The coca producing area is appealing not only to the Sendero Luminoso, but also to the "Tupac Amaru" Revolutionary Movement (MRTA). Both groups fight the Peruvian Armed Forces as well as each other. To combat the rise in illegal drug use in the United States, the federal government has developed a

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