President Calderon Urges U.S. to Review Gun Laws After Colorado Shooting Dave Graham - Reuters
go to original July 22, 2012

Items are left at a memorial in Aurora, Colorado created for the shooting victims. (Hector Acevedo/Zuma Press)

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexican President Felipe Calderon condemned U.S. gun laws as "mistaken" and urged Washington to review them after a shooter killed 12 people and injured more than 50 others at a U.S. movie theater on Friday.

In comments posted on his Twitter account on Saturday, Calderon offered his condolences to the United States after a gunman went on the rampage with an assault rifle at a midnight premier of the new Batman film in Aurora, Colorado.

But Mexico's president, who has repeatedly called on Washington to tighten gun controls to stop weapons flowing from the United States into the hands of Mexican drug cartels, said U.S. weapons policy needed a rethink after the killings.

"Because of the Aurora, Colorado tragedy, the American Congress must review its mistaken legislation on guns. It's doing damage to us all," Calderon said.

The presidency of Calderon, who leaves office at the end of November, has been overshadowed by his efforts to crack down on the drug gangs. Fighting among the cartels and their clashes with the state have killed more than 55,000 people since 2007.

In February, Calderon appealed to the United States to halt the flow of arms by unveiling a massive sign on the Mexican-U.S. border reading "No More Weapons!" The letters on the billboard in the city of Ciudad Juarez were made of recycled guns seized by security forces.

Calderon has also urged Washington to revive a ban on assault weapons in the United States that expired in 2004.

Editing by Eric Walsh

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