WASHINGTON (AFP) — In one of his last official acts, outgoing US President George W. Bush will meet with Mexican President Felipe Calderon on January 13, the White House said Saturday.
The meeting in Washington will allow the two leaders to discuss the US-Mexico partnership in confronting "criminal organizations and related violence that plague the region, " the White House said in a statement.
The visit comes after the United States last month adopted a 197-million-dollar, anti-drug trafficking package for Mexico as the country faces spiraling drug violence.
The aid is part of a wider program, known as the Merida Initiative, of 1.6 billion dollars over three years for Mexico and other Central American and Caribbean nations to fight organized crime.
Bush also plans to highlight the "people of Mexico's sacrifice in confronting the drug traffickers," the statement said.
Drug-related killings in Mexico more than doubled last year to over 5,300, amid a government clampdown on drug violence that has seen the deployment of 36,000 troops across the country.
The meeting in Washington comes a day after Calderon is welcomed by president-elect Barack Obama, who takes office on January 20.
Calderon will meet with Obama at the Mexican Cultural Institute in the US capital. The two men were expected to discuss the global economic crisis that has had a growing impact on Mexico due to its close ties with its northern neighbor.
Calderon will also meet congressional leaders and economic experts, according to Calderon's press office in Mexico City.
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