Soldiers from the 10th Mountain Division are at the U.S.-Mexico border tracking drones with the same kinds of radar systems that the U.S. funded for Ukraine to help the country counter aerial threats from Russia. The presence of these radar systems on the southern border highlights the proliferation of drones and their use by Mexico-based cartels.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials say that the agency’s personnel have witnessed reconnaissance drones surveilling border personnel and that the agency “continues to receive reporting of Mexico- based cartels utilizing armed drones against rival cartels,” a spokesperson for CBP told Task & Purpose.
“Because of this evolving threat, CBP works with the Department [of] Defense to maximize domain awareness for border security and officer safety of all threats, to include armed small unmanned aerial systems (drones). CBP continues to assess that currently, Mexico-based groups utilize drones to fuel intra and inter-cartel violence,” the spokesperson said.
The Department of Defense currently has around 8,500 troops supporting the Joint Task Force — Southern Border mission, providing assistance to Customs and Border personnel for logistics, vehicle maintenance, transportation, intelligence analysis, and aviation aerial reconnaissance.
Poster Comment:
These drones were stolen by Ukrainian military and sold to Drug Cartels.