will be included in a new centralized database. Because of the prevalence of corruption in the lower levels of law enforcement and the judiciary, this database should improve the ability to screen carefully all participants in counternarcotics operations. Venezuela is a party to the 1988 UN Drug Convention. Key bilateral agreements with the U.S. include a ship-boarding agreement from 1991, updated with a new protocol in 1997, 1995 Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty, ratified by the U.S. Congress in January 1999, an agreement on chemical precursor control (1992) and an equivalent on aerial hot pursuit (1994). In March 1998, Venezuela signed agreements with Colombia to share information on chemical precursor control and exchange information on drug movements. Venezuela has also signed drug control agreements with European countries focusing on the area of drug demand reduction in Venezuela. Venezuela is a partner in the OAS/CICAD (Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission) telecommunications system designed to control traffic in drugs and precursors on the Orinoco river in the tri-border region of Brazil, Colombia, and Venezuela. The three countries are working together to establish secure exchange of information on narcotics-related activity in this favorite area for narcotics traffickers. The USG has concluded a Customs Mutual Assistance Agreement (CMAA) with the GOV. The Venezuelan government is allocating some resources to improve the ability of the National Guard to conduct cargo inspections on the Colombian border and at the major port of Puerto Cabello. The National Guard participated in training programs given by the U.S. Customs Service in 1998 and has moved to reorganize the structure of interdiction units to optimize interdiction capabilities. However, drug shipments continue to leave from Venezuela's ports and more needs to be done to improve cargo inspection procedures. The new Customs law adopted at the end of 1998 mandated i...
