WASHINGTON (AP):

Jamaica was again named on a United States blacklist of drug-transit or drug-producing countries in a White House document released yesterday.

The list remained unchanged from a year ago, with 20 nations cited: Afghanistan, the Bahamas, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Guatemala, Haiti, India, Jamaica, Laos, Mexico, Myanmar, Nigeria, Pakistan, Panama, Paraguay, Peru and Venezuela.

The Bush administration said yesterday it sees disturbing trends in Bolivia's dealings with efforts to combat illicit drugs.

Bolivian officials defended the government's record, and Venezuela, also accused of being a major drug offender, said the United States was politicising the issue.

President George W. Bush sent a report to Congress that also noted that Myanmar and Venezuela, for the second year in a row, were determined to have "failed demonstrably" to meet their obligations under international counternarcotics requirements.

Provisions waived

Bush waived provisions of the law that could have cut off U.S. aid from Venezuela because of the designation. The president said he would maintain U.S. programmes that aid Venezuela's democratic institutions, establish community development projects and strengthen Venezuela's political party system.

The administration also decided not to cut these programmes last year because they promote democracy in Venezuela, a key U.S. goal in a country where, officials say, the commitment to democratic norms has been eroding under President Hugo Chavez.

The Venezuelan Embassy in Washington denounced the Americans for "the continued politicisation of important bilateral issues" with the criticism of Venezuela.

"The Bush administration consciously continues to practice a policy of substituting facts for ideology, the explicit purpose of which is to isolate Venezuela. This policy comes at a time when the Bush administration finds itself increasingly isolated from the international community for its unilateral approach to international relations and diplomacy."

The report singled out Bolivia, the world's third-largest producer of cocaine, for particular emphasis.

"Despite increased drug interdiction, Bolivia has undertaken policies that have allowed the expansion of coca cultivation and have significantly curtailed eradication," said White House press secretary Tony Snow.