MEXICO CITY – U.S. officials say they're sending fewer surveillance planes and Navy ships to halt Latin American drug shipments because of deep federal budget cuts put in place last week.
The cutbacks will force the U.S. to move patrols closer to the coast of South America and depend more on local governments hobbled by lack of equipment and official corruption.
The military/civilian task force that patrols drug-trafficking routes off the Central and South American coasts says two Navy ships won't be replaced when they return to U.S. ports in coming weeks. The task force usually has between two and five ships on patrol.
Flights by Customs and Border Patrol radar planes are being cut back by 40 percent, leaving them with time for roughly 100 flights for the rest of the year.
