Mexico's Drug War and Its Unintended Regional Consequences

Abstract

In 2006 Mexican President Felipe Calderon started a war on drugs in a manner unprecedented in Mexican history. Mexico is the current U.S. focus for counter drug efforts, but this focus, marked by an inflexible approach seen by many as ineffective, shifted a great deal of the drug problem to Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala. Negative second and third order effects from the Mexican war on drugs are destabilizing the strategic environment and threatening democracy as a form of government in these countries. The problem statement for U.S. strategic leaders is: How to develop and implement an integrated, synchronized, and holistic strategy for reducing the consumption of illegal drugs? Analyzing current U.S. policy via the elements of national power will highlight current shortcomings regarding the illicit drug environment in the Southern Hemisphere. Recommended policy adjustments along with requisite strategic means will demonstrate how the U.S. can improve the current environment in the region.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Mar 01, 2013
Accession Number
ADA589195

Entities

People

  • Matthew L. Eichburg

Organizations

  • United States Army War College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Central America
  • Department Of State
  • Drug Abuse
  • Drug Trafficking
  • El Salvador
  • Employment
  • Geography
  • Governments
  • Health Services
  • Human Behavior
  • International Law
  • Law
  • Political Systems
  • Public Policy
  • Street Drugs
  • United States Government
  • War Colleges

Readers

  • Child and Adolescent Substance Abuse Science in Autism Spectrum Disorders.
  • International Relations and European Studies
  • Strategic Security Studies