'Mexican lawsuit against US arms makers not intervention'

Mexico City, Aug 6 (IANS) Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has denied that his government's lawsuit against US arms manufacturers constituted "intervention" in Washington's domestic affairs.Addressing reporters here on Thursday, the President made it clear the suit was against arms makers and their lax sales practices, not against the US government or Americans' right to bear arms, reports Xinhua news agency."It is not an interventionist act, it is not against the US government, it is a civil procedure because we are affected by the lack of control over the sale of weapons," Lopez Obrador told reporters at the National Palace in Mexico City.The Mexican government on Wednesday filed a civil suit at a federal court in the city of Boston, Massachusetts, seeking damages from a dozen arms manufacturers for "actively facilitating the illicit trafficking of their weapons to the cartels and other criminals in Mexico".Lopez Obrador said US companies were making weapons "tailored" to organised crime and selling them indiscriminately."There is no restriction, no control, they even buy online," said Lopez Obrador, acknowledging the lawsuit will not be resolved soon.Mexican Foreign Affairs Minister Marcelo Ebrard said on Wednesday the lawsuit aimed to have the companies compensate the Mexican government "for damages caused by their negligent practices".The amount would be determined at trial, he said.
--IANS ksk/