Uploaded November 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
The designation of Mexican drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations (FTOs) and calls to deploy U.S. military forces to Mexico are just the latest developments in the complex U.S.-Mexico relationship. Since the 1960s, the U.S. has provided billions of dollars in military and police assistance to help Mexico stem the flow of drugs across the border. This support for militarized drug policing has left an enduring mark on the country's security landscape—yet has done little to stop illicit narcotics like fentanyl from killing thousands of U.S. citizens. As a top U.S. trade partner with whom the U.S. shares a vast border, Mexico is a key partner for U.S. counternarcotics objectives, yet the tensions resulting from decades of mutual securitization offer broader lessons for U.S. drug policy and security cooperation in Latin America.
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The designation of Mexican drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations (FTOs) and calls to deploy U.S. military forces to Mexico are just the latest developments in the complex U.S.-Mexico relationship. Since the 1960s, the U.S. has provided billions of dollars in military and police assistance to help Mexico stem the flow of drugs across the border. This support for militarized drug policing has left an enduring mark on the country's security landscape—yet has done little to stop illicit narcotics like fentanyl from killing thousands of U.S. citizens. As a top U.S. trade partner with whom the U.S. shares a vast border, Mexico is a key partner for U.S. counternarcotics objectives, yet the tensions resulting from decades of mutual securitization offer broader lessons for U.S. drug policy and security cooperation in Latin America.
Quincy Institute is an independent, nonprofit think tank. To support our work:
Help fund our research: quincyinst.org/donations
Read our reporting: ResponsibleStatecraft.org
TikTok: / quincyinst
Twitter: https://x.com/QuincyInst
Facebook: / quincyinst
Instagram: / quincyinst
Website: quincyinst.org
