Venezuelan Ambassador to the US Bernardo Álvarez voiced in Washington the Venezuelan government's willingness to work jointly with the US administration in topics of common interest, including the fight against drugs.

In a letter to congressman Eliot Engel, the Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, the Venezuelan diplomat said "Venezuela is committed to fight against drugs."

Quoting a report the UN Office on Drugs published in 2007, Álvarez claimed, "Venezuela in 2005 seized 59 metric tons of cocaine, the world's third highest amount following Colombia and the United States. Drug seizures climbed 88 percent compared to the previous year."

He added that Caracas -by adhering to a number of international conventions- "has ratified its willingness to cooperate."

In the letter to the US lawmaker, Álvarez underscored that despite difficult bilateral relations he "would like to reassert our willingness to work in subject matters of common interest and concern."

Álvarez criticized the US Drug Czar John Walters' statements that Venezuela was not making enough efforts to fight drug traffic. Álvarez replied that Walters "lacks willingness to work cooperatively."