The U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) has reportedly been using MQ-9 Reaper drones to conduct surveillance missions against drug cartels in Mexico.
Fox News reported that a senior U.S. official confirmed that the CIA has been using drones to gather surveillance on Mexican drug cartels and fentanyl laboratories. The anonymous official said that the MQ-9 Reaper drones, which were authorized under a Biden-Harris administration program that has continued under President Donald Trump’s administration, are not currently armed or “lethal.”
According to Fox News, the U.S. official noted that the intelligence gathered by the CIA’s surveillance operations is shared with Mexican government officials, who can then potentially take action against the illegal activities carried out by the Mexican drug cartels.
“This is not the Pakistan model,” a senior U.S. official said. “It is being done in partnership with the Mexican government.”
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“Countering drug cartels in Mexico and regionally is a priority for the CIA as a part of the Trump administration’s broader efforts to end the grave threat from narco-trafficking,” a CIA spokesperson told CNN. “Director [John] Ratcliffe is determined to put the CIA’s unique expertise to work against this multi-faceted challenge.”
CNN reported that the MQ-9 Reaper drones that are currently only being used for surveillance operations in Mexico could be easily equipped with weaponry that would allow the drones to carry out precision strikes against the Mexican drug cartels. The outlet noted that the United States has used armed MQ-9 Reaper drones to execute strikes in countries such as Syria, Iraq, and Somalia.
According to The New York Post, Mexican officials recently confirmed that the U.S. government’s use of drones for surveillance against the Mexican drug cartels “did not violate” Mexico’s airspace.
“We cannot rule out espionage because we do not know exactly what was done,” Mexican Defense Minister Ricardo Trevilla told reporters last week. “However, they did not violate national airspace.”
Addressing the recent increase of U.S. drone flights near Mexican airspace, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said, “The important thing here, I think, in the declaration, which is what we have always proposed, is that they share information with the government of Mexico.”
