It's time for America and The Defense Department to act!
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You can no longer call these cartels drug organizations. They are well-organized armies that control vast swaths of territory across Mexico and conduct massive cross-border operations into the heart of America. The Mexican Government and Military are powerless to stop them as the Cartels own them -all bought off!
The weapons used in the war in Ukraine are now allegedly showing up right on the other side of our southern border. Our elected leaders at the state legislature and county board of supervisors/commissioners had better do something about this quickly. If these cartels decide to unite and cross over the southern borderline, our local sheriffs and border patrol would be dusted and rolled over in a heartbeat. They cannot stand up to this kind of firepower. Legislatures and county officials must start allocating resources to local sheriffs and police departments so they can immediately add manpower and equipment to fight this possible eventuality. I have zero faith that the federal government would act quickly enough to stop an organized military engagement on our southern border. Alleged armed members of a Mexican Sinaloa drug cartel are found and arrested on the Texas side of the Southern Border, but many have entered our cities and are known as “getaways”.
They carry heavy 50 caliber sniper rifles, RPG-7, or rocket-propelled grenades, and PKM or Polemist Kalashnikov Full Auto Machine Guns. Both are Russian-made and capable of incredible destructive firepower. Both are heavily used in the war in Ukraine.
According to the assessment, the weapons were smuggled from Ukraine to Mexico into the hands of the cartel, whose stronghold is in the city of Tamaulipas, on the
US border, from where the cartel also smuggles drugs into the US towns and cities. The weapons given to the Ukrainians by the US have been detected and used against US Border Patrol and soldiers at the border with Mexico."1
The Mexican Army claims that it has seized hundreds of fully automatic machine guns, dozens of grenade launchers, and a dozen rocket launchers from drug cartels since 2018. Now, Mexico’s top diplomats are demanding the U.S. investigate to find out how these military-grade weapons are being smuggled into the country.
According to The Associated Press, Alicia Bárcena, Foreign Relations Secretary, called for immediate attention.
“The (Mexican) Defense Department has warned the United States about weapons entering Mexico that are for the exclusive use of the U.S. Army. An investigation into this must be carried out,” Bárcena said.
Ken Salazar, the U.S. Ambassador to Mexico, confirmed that the issue had been addressed in recent meetings and pledged that the U.S. would work closely with Mexico’s Defense Department to resolve it.
“We are going to look into it, we are committed to working with Sedena to see what’s going on,” Salazar said.
The weapons were not identified as sourced directly from the U.S. military. Other potential sources for the guns may come from black-market trading or previous conflicts in the region. Mexican laws permit only low-caliber weapons to be owned by civilians, and the sale or trade of these weapons is strictly regulated. Previously, Mexico has filed lawsuits against American gun manufacturers, stating that they were aware that their weapons were being resold on the black market.
While the lawsuit was dismissed in 2022, an appeals court in Boston revived the suit earlier this week. The appeal was granted because the federal Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA), which protects gun manufacturers from misuse of their products by individuals, does not extend protection beyond the U.S. border.
In the complaint, Mexico claims that over 2% of the weapons made by the named companies, which include Beretta USA, Barrett Firearms Manufacturing, Colt’s Manufacturing Company, and Glock, are smuggled across the border, amounting to over 500,000 weapons annually. The manufacturers cited as defendants in the suit deny any wrongdoing or knowledge of any activities alleged in the lawsuit.
The lawsuit revival and plea for U.S. investigation come just one month after Reuters detailed a potential gun-smuggling ring in Racine, Wisconsin. U.S. federal arms-trafficking investigators allege that eight people facilitated illegal gun trade to the Mexican cartel Jalisco Nueva Generacion.
All defendants have pleaded not guilty, and a jury trial was set for May 2024. Regarding the indictments, Alejandro Celoria, legal advisor to Mexico’s foreign ministry, said the U.S. firearms business should be more careful to ‘prevent their products from falling into the wrong hands.” [1]
Some of Mexico’s most feared criminal groups, including the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, use military vehicles in pitched gun battles with the police. Organizations like the Gulf Cartel and the Northeast Cartel use armored trucks to fight each other. Mexican security forces call these vehicles monstrous (monsters), but they are also known as rhinoceroses (rhinos) and narcotanques (narco-tanks). Cartels emblazon the exteriors with their initials or the latest camouflage patterns, sometimes making them hard to distinguish from official military vehicles.
Our southern border continues to be breached by illegal border crossers and the cartel's movement of drugs to inner America. We must remain vigilant and aggressive and forge ahead with a more offensive-oriented border strategy. You cannot win and defeat this national threat by being on defense. Now is the time for offensive action.
If I were the Commander-in-Chief, I would have my national security staff and military commanders plan and execute a strategy to secure the southern border and allow the US rule of law to prevail. The Department of Defense has been negligent in defending the United States and its citizens against an invasion of our country by external enemies. Destroying the Cartels requires offensive and defensive military operations.
Paul E. Vallely is a retired U.S. Army major general and senior military analyst. He served in the Vietnam War and retired in 1993 as deputy commanding general, Pacific Command. In 2004.
For Americans to be unable to understand why this problem continues we must take a 1000 yard view of what is going on and who says YES OR NO to stopping it.
The government of this country including the elected, unelected and the judicial system create the environment that gives permission to the drug providers and drug purchasers.
We the people are blind to the real cause of the drug problems as well as the economic problem that it causes.
WAKE THE HELL UP!
For Americans to be unable to understand why this problem continues we must take a 1000 yard view of what is going on and who says YES OR NO to stopping it.
The government of this country including the elected, unelected and the judicial system create the environment that gives permission to the drug providers and drug purchasers.
We the people are blind to the real cause of the drug problems as well as the economic problem that it causes.
WAKE THE HELL UP!