EL PASO, Texas (AP) _ U.S. Sen. John Kerry says the Mexican government is strained in its fight against powerful drug cartels and needs the help of the U.S. government, but is not on the brink of failure.
The Massachusetts Democrat said at a Senate field hearing in El Paso the Senate needs to ratify a treaty over cross-border weapons smuggling and curb the American market for illegal drugs.
Kerry said drug profits and trafficking of weapons is fueling the deadly fight.
The United States is responsible for a majority of the high-powered weapons cartels are using against the Mexican military and police.