The Closest Alligator to the Boat: Mexico's Drug-Fueled Violence

Abstract

Mexico's drug-fueled and undeclared war is spiraling out of control, and has a real and growing ability to threaten the Mexican government and affect the American southwest. There have been many Americans killed as a result of this heated conflict, yet the policies that should protect American interests are not doing enough to either minimize the effects of this war on the United States or stop the fight altogether. The drug cartels involved are starting to resemble a paramilitary insurgency, using beheadings, Improvised Explosive Devices (IED), Vehicle-Borne Improvised Explosive Devices (VBIED) and Special Forces type raids. The Mexican government seems underequipped to do anything about this fight and it routinely gives the appearance that it is out gunned and out maneuvered. These new tactics, coupled with the cartels' transnational ties to the Columbian FARC, Venezuela, and other U.S. adversaries, pose a credible and strategic threat to the United States. The latest developments in this fight, along with convincing intelligence that our enemies have the ability to open an irregular warfare front on our southern border, demand the United States' full attention in changing the war to our south.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jan 28, 2011
Accession Number
ADA547384

Entities

People

  • Tray J. Ardese

Organizations

  • United States Army War College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical
  • Counter WMD
  • Energy and Power Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Asymmetric Warfare
  • Commerce
  • Criminals
  • Explosive Devices
  • Geography
  • Governments
  • Improvised Explosive Devices
  • Law
  • Military Training
  • National Security
  • Societies
  • South America
  • Special Forces
  • United States
  • Violence
  • War Colleges
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Educational Psychology
  • Munitions and Ordnance Engineering
  • Political Violence and Terrorism Studies.