Mexico president makes first visit to Guerrero since students' disappearance

MEXICO CITY, Dec. 5 (UPI) -- Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto visited Guerrero state on Thursday for the first time since 43 university students disappeared there in late September, but did not visit the town of Iguala where they were last seen.

While the public has for the past two months expressed frustration with the government's delayed response to the students' disappearance, the president's visit to Guerrero on Thursday was instead focused on the economy.

"We are here because after what has happened, we recognize that Guerrero's most important economic activity has slowed," Pena Nieto said Thursday from the popular tourist destination of Acapulco.

On Nov. 26, the U.S. Embassy in Mexico issued a travel warning, urging its citizens to avoid non-essential travel to Acapulco because of ongoing protests and violence linked to the disappearance of 43 students in the state of Guerrero.

The president's visit coincided with the deployment of federal police and soldiers to 30 towns -- including Acapulco -- in the states of Guerrero, Mexico, Michoacan and Morelos, as part of a government effort to boost confidence in Mexico's security forces -- and to attract economic investment.