(13 Aug 2013)
AP TELEVISION
1. Zoom out of John Kerry, US Secretary of State, being shown around headquarters of Colombian National Police Counter-Narcotics Directorate by Juan Carlos Pinzon, Defence Minister
2. Mid of Kerry inspecting special counter-narcotics troops
3. Pan across Kerry walking into education bus
4. Wide of Kerry speaking to officials inside bus
5. Zoom in on Kerry watching animation on screen in bus, banner at top of screen reads: (Spanish) "Prevention, the best investment"
6. SOUNDBITE: (English) John Kerry, US Secretary of State:
"This is a very impressive display of Colombia's commitment to try to make a difference in this effort. We all know it's a very difficult one. And I particularly want to express our gratitude to those police officers, those members of the military also, who have been wounded or have sacrificed their lives in the effort to try to make the world safe from narcotics traffickers, criminals and terrorists."
7. Wide of Kerry inspecting special counter-narcotics troops
8. Pan across Kerry walking with Pinzon and Colombian National Police Director Jose Roberto Leon
STORYLINE:
US Secretary of State John Kerry visited the headquarters of the Colombian National Police Counter-Narcotics Directorate in the capital Bogota on Monday.
He was briefed on the progress of an America-Colombia partnership on fighting drugs.
Kerry was accompanied by Defence Minister Juan Carlos Pinzon and inspected counter-narcotics troops working out of the base.
He was also given a tour of a bus, funded by the police, which travels to deprived communities to give children internet access and to educate them about the dangers of drugs.
"This is a very impressive display of Colombia's commitment to try to make a difference in this effort. We all know it's a very difficult one," said Kerry, during his visit.
"And I particularly want to express our gratitude to those police officers, those members of the military also, who have been wounded or have sacrificed their lives in the effort to try to make the world safe from narcotics traffickers, criminals and terrorists."
According to the US State Department, Colombia has seen a 53 percent reduction in the cultivation of coca since 2007.
Last year, Colombian authorities reported a record seizure of 279 metric tons of cocaine and cocaine products in the country and abroad.
The government has increasingly assumed operational and financial responsibility for many US-backed drug-fighting programmes.
It has worked to dramatically reduce kidnappings and political assassinations and disrupt illegal narcotics trafficking with the help of more than 8.5 (b) billion US dollars from America since 2000.
But US assistance to Colombia has been gradually decreasing, falling from 287 (m) million US dollars in fiscal 2008 to 161 (m) million US dollars in fiscal 2012.
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