Mexico City, May 23 (EFE).– Drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” (Shorty) Guzman will not appeal any ruling opening the way for his extradition to the United States, a move approved by the Mexican Foreign Relations Secretariat last week, if he reaches an agreement with U.S. authorities, defense attorney Jose Refugio Rodriguez told EFE.

“Joaquin is not against facing justice” in the United States and an agreement “would be the way to resolve the problem. If it happens, we’ll forgo the appeals process,” Rodriguez said.

The Foreign Relations Secretariat said Friday it approved Guzman’s extradition so he can be tried by federal courts in California and Texas for a range of crimes.

The Sinaloa cartel boss could plead guilty to cocaine trafficking charges in California and cocaine trafficking, criminal conspiracy, money laundering and arms charges in Texas, the attorney said.

The possible terms of any agreement are not known because “the conditions are set by the government” of the United States, Rodriguez said, adding that the drug lord may plead guilty but would not cooperate in the prosecution of third parties or work for U.S. authorities.

A deal could help Guzman get a reduced sentence as in other cases, including that of Jesus Hector Palma, another Sinaloa cartel member who could be released from prison this year.

Palma’s sentence was reduced from 16 years to nine years for good behavior, the attorney said.

Rodriguez said he and Guzman’s U.S. lawyer, William Stuttgart, would try to negotiate a deal with U.S. prosecutors this week.

Guzman’s Mexican lawyers, meanwhile, continue working on the appeal of the extradition order in case a deal with the U.S. government falls through.

Stuttgart plans to meet soon with Guzman at the prison where the drug lord is being held in Ciudad Juarez, located across the border from El Paso, Texas, Rodriguez said.

Guzman was transferred to the prison in the border city on May 7 from the Altiplano maximum-security prison in central Mexico.

The Mexican government had opposed extradition but reversed course after Guzman escaped from Altiplano on July 11, 2015, through a mile-long tunnel dug to his cell.

He had earlier broken out of a prison in the western state of Jalisco in 2001 and spent more than 13 years on the run before being recaptured on Feb. 22, 2014, in the Pacific resort city of Mazatlan.

Guzman’s organization rose to become one of the main sources of illicit drugs entering the United States.

The Mexican kingpin’s wealth led to his name regularly appearing on Forbes magazine’s list of global billionaires. EFE