Andean Drug War

If you have an interest in American history and how we got to where we are with the war on drugs, you need to read Smuggler Nation. You'll be glad you did.

A Peruvian government push into a remote area to eradicate coca production there is being met by calls for armed resistance.

Colombia's FARC guerrillas have called on the Colombian government to consider legalizing coca cultivation for medicinal and therapeutic ends and for cultural reasons.

Coca production is up in Peru for the sixth year in a row, responding to thriving demand from Brazil and Europe. Colombia is barely holding on to first place now.

Bolivia and Venezuela told the US to take a hike after President Obama last week certified them as not cooperating in US drug policy objectives. They suggested the US take a good look in the mirror.

Is the world's longest-running insurgency coming to an end? The Colombian government and the leftist guerrillas of the FARC have announced their first peace talks in a decade, but that's just the first step.

Drug reformers won't find the Democratic platform's positions on drug policy very inspiring.

We review "Drugs, Insecurity, and Failed States: The Problems of Prohibition," a new book from the very establishment International Institute for Strategic Studies.

If you're interested in Colombia, coca and cocaine, and leftist guerrilla armies, we have a book for you.

Coca production in Colombia ticked upward last year after four straight years of declines, the UNODC said in a new report. It's still way down from its peak, though.