Mexico's Foreign Ministry has decided to allow the extradition of drug kingpin, Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman to the United States. As CCTV's Franc Contreras reports from Mexico City, it's one of the most closely watched drug trafficking stories in the world.

Joaquin El Chapo Guzman is the convicted leader of the Sinaloa cartel, one of the world's most powerful and violent drug trafficking organizations.

Guzman, a billionaire, captured global attention by escaping twice from maximum-security prisons in Mexico - first in 2001, and then in the summer of 2015 through a million-dollar tunnel.

Besides his convictions for drug trafficking in Mexico, he's also wanted in seven US federal courts on charges ranging from cocaine and marijuana trafficking, to money laundering and murder.

The decision by Mexico's Foreign Ministry to allow Guzman's extradition to move forward comes with this condition:

Mexico's Foreign Relations Ministry: "The U.S. government provided sufficient assurances that the death penalty shall not apply to Mr. Guzman Loera if he is extradited and tried in that country."

Mexico says the United States government has promised that Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman will not face the death penalty if he ends up serving jail time in that country.

Chapo Guzman's two brazen escapes from the Puente Grande and Altiplano máximum security prisons have further damaged Mexico's image as a country whose justice system is far too corrupt to contain a prisoner of this level.

An expert in US - Mexico relations, Analicia Ruiz says by opening the way for this extradition, Mexico wants to show Washington that it is a good ally.

"I think it's a way of improving Mexico's image at the international level and a signal of willingness and cooperation from Mexico and the United States," said Analicia Ruiz, expert on US-Mexico relations of Anahuac University.

Guzman's legal team says they'll appeal the extradition all the way to Mexico's Supreme Court if necessary.

The jailed drug kingpin's lawyers are also waging a public-relations campaign, speaking to news media and even organizing protests, all in an effort to make certain their client never ends up spending a life sentence behind bars in the United States.