DoE to send radiation dectectors to Mexico

Whether or not our recent report on lax Mexican security procedures is responsible for this we leave to the good judgement of our readers. All we know is that last week we reported that a reporter from McClatchey Newspaper Service managed to approach two Mexican off-shore oil installations without being stopped — an effort, we noted, that was intended to test security after al Qaeda threatened Mexico for providing the United States with oil. Then this week the Department of Energy announced that it would donate (unnamed) radiation detectors to the Mexican government for installation at the ports of Manzanillo, Lazaro Cardenas, Altamira, and Veracruz — ports that account for 92 percent of Mexico’s maritime trade. Under the so-called Megaports deals, DoE will also provide training for the equipment, which should be installed by the end of the year. “Mexico customs will be able to install, in a very short term, the most advanced nuclear and radioactive detection technology, allowing Mexico’s customs ports to be among the world’s most secured and efficient,” said Mexican Finance Minister Agustin Carstens. Mexico and the United States will share the costs.