"MEXICAN DRUG CARTELS EMPLOY MORE FOOT SOLDIERS THAN MEXICAN ARMY
Published 7 March 2009

Mexico is spinning out of control; narco-terrorists have infiltrated the Mexican government, creating a shadow regime that complicates efforts to contain and destroy the drug cartels; Mexico ranks behind only Pakistan and Iran as a top U.S. national security concern -- but above Afghanistan and Iraq

Back in January we wrote that "With drug-related killings doubling in 2008 over 2007, and with drug lords becoming more brazen in their attacks on the state, the U.S. Joint Forces Command warns of the potential for 'rapid and sudden collapse' of the Mexican government" (24 January 2009 HS Daily Wire). A month later we wrote that "A combination of a dramatic increase in crime -- from drug-related murders to kidnapping for ransom -- and a growing perception that government agencies cannot or would not do much about it, have led to a boom for private security companies in Central and Latin America" (15 February 2009 HS Daily Wire).

In a detailed and unsettling report, the Washington Times's Sara Carter writes that the U.S. Defense Department now thinks Mexico's two most deadly drug cartels together have fielded more than 100,000 foot soldiers -- an army that rivals Mexico's armed forces and threatens to turn the country into a narco-state. "It's moving to crisis proportions," a senior U.S. defense official told the Washington Times. The official, who spoke on the condition that he not be named because of the sensitive nature of his work, said the cartels' "foot soldiers" are on a par with Mexico's army of about 130,000.

Carter writes that the disclosure underlines the enormity of the challenge Mexico and the United States face as they struggle to contain what is increasingly looking like a civil war or an insurgency along the U.S.-Mexico border. In the past year, about 7,000 people have died -- more than 1,000 in January alone. The conflict has become increasingly brutal, with victims beheaded and bodies dissolved in vats of acid.

Note that the death toll dwarfs that in Afghanistan, where about 200 fatalities, including 29 U.S. troops, were reported in the first two months of 2009. About 400 people, including 31 U.S. military personnel, died in Iraq during the same period.

The biggest and most violent combatants are the Sinaloa cartel, known by U.S. and Mexican federal law enforcement officials as the "Federation" or "Golden Triangle," and its main rival, "Los Zetas" or the Gulf Cartel, whose territory runs along the Laredo,Texas, borderlands. The two cartels appear to be negotiating a truce or merger to defeat rivals and better withstand government pressure. U.S. officials say the consequences of such a pact would be grave. "I think if they merge or decide to cooperate in a greater way, Mexico could potentially have a national security crisis," the defense official said. He said the two have amassed so many people and weapons that Mexican President Felipe Calderon is "fighting for his life" and "for the life of Mexico right now."

As a result, Mexico is behind only Pakistan and Iran as a top U.S. national security concern, ranking above Afghanistan and Iraq, the defense official added.

Independent analysts warn that narco-terrorists have infiltrated the Mexican government, creating a shadow regime that further complicates efforts to contain and destroy the cartels.

In response to the challenge, U.S. and Mexican authorities have stepped up raids on cartel members in both countries. Last week, U.S. and Mexican forces arrested 755 people, including 52 in the United States associated with the Sinaloa cartel. Cartel leader Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, however, is still at large. He is thought to be living in Sinaloa and protected by hired gunmen and Mexican federal officials on his payroll, said a U.S. law enforcement official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the ongoing intelligence operations.

Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) spokesman Garrison Courtney said last week's raids put a dent in cartel operations but that public attention to the crisis has been long in coming. "If we don't start paying attention, the violence -- which has already spilled into the U.S. -- is going to get worse," Courtney said. "This is a shared interest between the United States and Mexico to go after these drug traffickers." In recent years, however, U.S. officials have been reluctant to share information with Mexican counterparts, fearing that they will leak to the cartels. DEA officials interviewed by the Times said the Sinaloa cartel employs Mexican federal officials, while other cartels pay off local governments and police. "Many times, what you see isn't really what's going on," said a DEA official, who asked not to be named because of the nature of his work. "Many times the death of federal officers or local police isn't a cartel making the hit, but the cartels themselves in the government fighting one another. The same thing has happened to the Mexican army, where the cartels have also bought loyalty to move dope into the U.S."

A U.S. counterterrorism official said, however, that the severity of the crisis was bringing the U.S. and Mexican governments closer and that the CIA will work closely with Mexico if asked for guidance. "Both countries have a common interest in clamping down on the cartels, and that has shaved away some of the underlying historical tensions in what has long been a close relationship with Mexico," said the official, who spoke on the condition that he not be named. "The Mexicans understand - perhaps more so than at any time in recent memory - that we are genuine about taking these people on."

I get emails from my cousin who used to be on the border patrol about situations in Mexico.
It is terrible that Mexico is in a civil war,because of the drug cartels. Mexico has so much potential

Yes, it's even more terrible that governments let these cartels make monopoly profits...

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Indeed . If only we could somehow make it unprofitable for them ...

I don't see Phillip Morris killing a lot of people

...not by using guns anyway.

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They need to study the example of Colombia. Ten or fifteen years ago Colombia might have been categorized as a narco state. Now it's a modern functioning democracy. The drug trade only survives in isolated areas where it is used as a fundraiser by the narcoterrorist FARC.

What amazes me is that this threat is right on Americas doorstep!

Things may be bad in Mexico, but it has always been a violent country as have most former spanish colonies.

The Mexicans though can beat these scumbags; they need assistance from the Colombians and other outside help that is experienced in crippling the drug trade. The cuban government have a proud reputation of fighting drug traffickers, in the 80's they booted out suspects on the orders of fidel castro.



If there were more people in South America like Calderon and Uribe, the continent would be more stable.

Cheers for that. I needed a good laugh this morning.

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The serious drug violance is only in certain areas. Mexicans recently have been at pains to emphasise that and they are right to do so. Decades of corruption has played its part, but perhaps this peaking of drug related violance is a signal that the Mexican state has to turn a corner. I don't see mexicao being a failed state, Mexicans are far too nationalistic.

You dont know much about Colombia do you harvey?

Right... In other news Zimbabwe has held free elections and Ireland has won an Olympic medal with the use of steroids.

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