The meeting comes amid Mexico’s lawsuit against arms producers and distributors in the United States, in which it is argued that illicit trafficking is having an impact on homicides in the country. By reducing this flow, violence rates are expected to drop.
Just last January 14, Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard was recognized as Person of the Year by the Arms Control Association, for “the innovative approach to combating illegal arms trafficking” present in the lawsuit against US arms producers and distributors. .
Daryl G. Kimball, executive director of the association, stated: “The Mexican Ministry of Foreign Relations lawsuit against firearms manufacturing companies represents an important and novel way of holding illegal actors accountable for their role in the violence caused by the trafficking of firearms across international borders.
Until now, the strategy to combat arms trafficking, mainly from the United States, had focused on government actions to control and punish consumers who defy the laws that regulate the sector, while the current strategy of the Foreign Ministry seeks that companies take responsibility for preventing their products from being trafficked to Mexico.
