Reuters
September 29, 2001
Pav Jordan

MEXICO CITY - Mexican President Vicente Fox said on Friday that Mexico was prepared to go "all the way" to help the United States hunt down those responsible for Sept.11 suicide attacks on New York and Washington.

Seeking to dispel his nation's image as a lukewarm supporter of Washington's war on terrorism, Fox took to the airwaves and told American viewers of CNN's Larry King Live that Mexico was a fully committed ally of the United States.

"We have to show commitment and solidarity to fight terrorism," he said.

Asked how far Mexico was willing to go to help Washington track down those behind attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, he replied: "As far as needed, all the way."

Fox's appearance on national U.S. television was aimed at silencing critics, many of them in the United States, who say Mexico has vacillated while many other nations have flocked to join the U.S. coalition for a war on terrorism.

His remarks on Friday were the most unequivocal pledges of support since the attacks and went much further than a promise of unconditional support on Tuesday, when he listed a series of caveats constraining Mexico's freedom of action.

Fox said that one area in which Mexico was not in a position to provide help was in the use of military force.

"Militarily speaking, we don't count. We don't have a strong army," said Fox.

He said Mexico was best suited to help in intelligence gathering and clamping down on its 2,000-mile border with the United States.

"We will make sure that Mexican territory is absolutely not used by terrorists," he said.

And he added: "I think that we have much better means and ways to participate and contribute with our intelligence and information, with our actions against organized crime and against terrorism."

Fox said that Mexico is already cooperating with U.S. agencies to monitor border activity and keep an eye on money movements through Mexican bank accounts that may be linked to "terrorists."

"For the meantime we have strengthened our mechanisms related to migration so that we make sure that Mexican territory is not used by terrorists," he said.

Fox said he and President Bush have spoken on the telephone on three separate occasions since the attacks occurred.

Fox told Larry King that in a conversation a day after the attacks, his 13-year-old son Rodrigo wrested the telephone from his hand to pledge his personal support to President Bush and the American cause.

"Papa, I want to speak to my friend George," Fox quoted his son as having told him, adding, "he spoke to him (Bush) and told him he felt sorrow."

One U.S. analyst who watched the interview said that Fox appeared to have done what was necessary to dispel criticisms that he was less than forthright in his backing of Washington.

"I am delighted, he needed to do it without ifs and buts," said the analyst who requested anonymity.

"If he didn't hit a home run it would have backfired."

U.S. authorities are combing the world for suspects in the air attacks and have asked authorities in rich and poor nation's alike to keep an eye out for strange movements on their borders or in their nations' banks.

The world's leading industrial powers agreed on Tuesday to cooperate in trying to cut off the funds militants need to plan and execute attacks like those that left more than 6,000 people dead or missing in New York, Washington and Pennsylvania.

Finance ministers of the Group of Seven rich industrial nations issued a statement after a conference call, saying they pledged to pursue "a comprehensive strategy to disrupt terrorist funding around the world."