United States Department Of State

Terrorist organizations and organised criminal groups have posed a threat to international security since their time of existence but over the past 3 decades, a convergence of these groups has lead to similarities between these organizations arising in the 1980s and this is how the term narco terrorism was conceptualized. Narco terrorism is evolving into an even greater threat that is affecting all the regions of the world. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland believes that efficient measures have to be elaborated so as to tackle this international problem. Due to it’s trans-national nature, it is a threat that cannot be faced by one country on it’s own. The UN shouldn’t waste time on self-oriented issues that countries

Mexico has a long history of cartels the deaths, drugs and weapon trafficking is in all time high increasing year by year. “Mexico's gangs have flourished since the late 19th century, mostly in the north due to their proximity to towns along the U.S.-Mexico border. But it was the American appetite for cocaine in the 1970s that gave Mexican drug cartels immense power to manufacture and transport drugs across the border. Early Mexican gangs were primarily situated in border towns where prostitution, drug use, bootlegging and extortion flourished” (Wagner). They keep themselves armed and ready with gun supplies shipped from the U.S, taking control of the drug trades. The violence is spilling so out of control that

The homeland security mission and goals face many roadblocks and challenges in today’s world. The Quadrennial Homeland Security Review lists six strategic challenges which the Department of Homeland Security feels are of exceptional concern to the nation. Of these outlined challenges I believe that transnational criminal organizations

After reading Mexico’s Illicit Drug Networks and the State Reaction, I have concluded that this short read is highly informative and intriguing. I personally was drawn in by the horrific stories of violence, kidnapping, and mass murders of deadly encounters, and fascinated by learning how the state planned and responded. Author Nathan Jones, is able to illustrate why Mexican drug cartels have been able to prolong existence while under attack by Mexico and the United States. He is able to do so by examining and comparing two types of illicit drug networks and how they provoke different state reactions based on their business strategy. Jones relates his discoveries to the Arellano Felix Organization because “it was one of the first Mexican cartel to be targeted by the state and split along trafficking-oriented and territorial lines [where] one survived and one did not” (p. 12). This read is significant because it allows for the government to better distinguish between drug networks that will withstand the test of time, and those that will crumble under pressure. Jones utilizes his findings and applied it to the novel, and the current drug prohibition program.

As stated by David Lunhow and José De Cordoba, in the year 2008, 6,000 people died in drug-related violence in Mexico, the U.S.’s second biggest trading partner. The cartels now operate in 230 cities and towns around Mexico, and commit crimes in the U.S. as well, such as in the case of Phoenix, where 370 kidnapping cases were reported in 2008 (De Cordoba & Lunhow). As many as 90% of the people killed in Mexico are said to be linked to trade in some way and in President Felipe Calderon’s six-year term, there were 153 fights

Since the 1900’s Mexico has been run by several drug cartels, and leaders. These drug cartels have been increasing their territory, murder tolls, and power. The cartels have started to take over the government and Mexico has been becoming known as a lost state. Drug cartels are rising to power because of the lack of government, and structure which also brings fear to all the regular citizens throughout Mexico. Many citizens regularly get murdered for lying to the cartel, informing the authorities about the cartels, or antagonizing the cartels. Although Mexican drug cartels, or drug trafficking organizations, have existed for several decades, their influence has increased since the demise of the Colombian Cali in the 1990s. Mexican drug cartels now dominate the wholesale illicit drug market and in 2007 controlled 90% of the cocaine entering the United States. Arrests of key cartel leaders, has led to increasing drug violence as cartels fight for control of the trafficking routes into the United States. As violence levels rise so do tension levels.

A report from the University of San Diego's Trans-Border Institute [PDF] details the challenges of calculating the toll of Mexico's drug violence, and analyzes shifting patterns in the country's organized crime.

“Since former president Felipe Calderon launched an all-out war against the cartels in 2006, about 80,000 people have been killed,” (Dana). From 2007 to 2014 the crime affairs in Mexico have claimed more lives all together than the war that has been taking place in the Middle East with Iraq and Afghanistan. Not only has the number of casualties include cartel members themselves but also those numbers include young children, men and women of a variety of ages. More than 164,000 Mexicans have disappeared or been killed in the conflict, and the extreme and chronic violence, coupled with great poverty “Mother Jones”. As for the numbers keep growing, and as the years add up this The continuous war on drugs that has been going on for an extended amount of time may have some valuable lessons for the Middle East (Dana). In the years since the Calderóns administration, Mexico has undoubtedly seen a decrease in the number of gangland executions (the eerie way “progress” is measured in a country immersed in a drug-fueled Civil War). There are a couple of revealing situations that indicate an increase in the advancement of these cartels not only getting more violent but as well as gaining more territory. Such incidents include executions in non-metropolitan areas that have remained

Over the last several decades, violence has consumed and transformed Mexico. Since the rise of dozens of Mexican cartels, the Mexican government has constantly been fighting an ongoing war with these criminal organizations. The cartel organizations have a primary purpose of managing and controlling illegal drug trafficking operations in Central America and South America to the United States. Violence on a massive and brutal scale has emerged due to the nature of the illegal drug trade. Because the drug trade is vastly widespread, cartels are often fighting one another and competing in business. Mexican authorities count at least 12 major cartels, but also talk of an untold numbers of smaller splinter groups. (Taipei Times). Five cartels

Over the past few decades drug cartels in Mexico have begun glorifying their brutal attacks and fearless efforts over the war on drugs and territory. Drug trafficking has become such a profitable epidemic that various organizations have grown to exploit this area of criminality. Cartels have gained notoriety by amassing large profits in exploiting the drug business. These organizations have created complex strategies to smuggle vast amounts of narcotics from the arms of the producer straight into the hands of the buyers. They have perfected this strategy successfully by distributing the illicit narcotics with the help of their government and local law enforcement, who in return receive bribes of monetary value to look the other way. This

The Mexican drug cartels have been around probably since the inception of the PRI, but have gotten stronger since the Columbia cartels; those of the Medellin and Cali factions have lost their power. The “gangs” or cartels of Mexico have operated since the last 40 for 50 years. “The gangs operating on the northern border of Mexico are long-time, well established that is, consisting of Mexican grandfathers, sons and grandsons. The reason for the present day struggles with drug cartels occur is that for some people it is a way of life, just like some people inherit the family business. In the U.S., most gangs try and operate in a low key fashion; however, in Mexico, these cartels have operated openly and with little fear

What are federal law enforcement agencies doing to combat the powerful Mexican drug cartels that are making billions of dollars smuggling drugs into the U.S.? This paper focuses on the response that U.S. officials and law enforcement agencies have made to attempt to slow the flow of dangerous drugs across the border, and to cut into the leadership of the cartels.

As we all know Drug Trafficking has been a major problem for years now. The Mexican Drug War is one that has existed for decades which the government’s goal has been to get rid of the drug violence but there hasn’t been any solution to solve this illegal issue. “Under the Presidency of Felipe Calderón (2007–2012) the Mexican government has made an effort to stop their operations using crackdowns. As a result, more than 50,000 people have died in the last six years and drug traffic has not declined” (González, 1). “Although the Mexican government has been fighting the drug industry in the last decades, Drug Trafficking Organization (DTOs) have been expanding across space and violence has increased dramatically” (Gonzalez, 2). This could be because

The Mexican Drug war has been an ongoing conflict for several decades. Mexico is in an ideal location in a geographical sense because of its place in between the United States and Latin America. The cartels are able to smuggle large amounts of dangerous drugs across the borders, in turn generating large amounts of money. These acts of smuggling almost always produce large amounts of violence and bribery. It is important to look at this conflict not just for what it is right now in the present day, but also at the conflict’s core.

The government has made some gains, but at a heavy price. A total of 34,612 people have died in drug-related killings in Mexico in the first four years (Siddique). Most of these killing are between cartel rivals fighting for the control of territories. There are five cartels operating in Mexico: the Sinaloa, the Gulf, Juarez, Tijuana, the Zetas. The major cartels are the Gulf, Sinaloa and Juarez (Cook 21). Many of these cartels have joined together forming powerful alliances known as the “Federation” (Cook 17). The cartels work together, but they remain independent organizations.