A federal court in Massachusetts accepted to consider the suit against companies "responsible for the negligent trade in weapons used by criminals here," Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard said.

"It's a first great step," he wrote on Twitter.

The companies named in the suit, which was filed on August 4, include Smith & Wesson, Beretta, Colt, Glock, Century Arms, Ruger and Barrett.

Together they manufacture more than two-thirds of the over half a million weapons that are illegally brought into Mexico each year, according to the Mexican authorities.

The Latin American country accuses US manufacturers of developing different firearm models especially for Mexican drug traffickers.

Between 70 and 90 percent of all weapons recovered from crime scenes in Mexico were smuggled in from the United States, Mexico's foreign ministry says.

The lawsuit seeks compensation for the damage caused by the firms' alleged "negligent practices," as well as the implementation of adequate standards to "monitor and discipline" arms dealers.

The National Shooting Sports Foundation, the US firearm industry trade association, has called the allegations "baseless" and told the Mexican government that it is responsible for crime within its own borders.

Mexico has seen more than 300,000 murders since 2006 when it deployed the military in the war on drug trafficking, most of them blamed on criminal gangs.

jla/dr/sw

SMITH & WESSON HOLDING CORPORATION

COLT GROUP