Mexican Drug Cartel Members In Ukraine To Gain Drone Skills

PAUL’S DEFENSE BRIEF (PDB) – Drug cartel members fought in Ukraine to learn first-person view (FPV) attack drone tactics. Hands-on combat experience with FPV drones in Ukraine could radically speed up the learning curve for Mexican cartels already in the early stages of using these weapons.

Mexico’s increasingly well-armed drug cartels began to use quadcopters equipped with small explosive devices about five years ago. They later graduated to using drones that dropped munitions on enemies and law enforcement.

FPV drones are now being used in a war between the Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG) and Sinaloa cartels in coastal west central Mexico.

Ukrainian counterintelligence services are investigating the infiltration of Latin American drug cartel members into the country’s International Legion, with operatives seeking advanced drone training to later deploy against rivals and security forces.

Investigators are looking into whether members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) have joined the International Legion for similar purposes.

FOR YOUR EYES ONLY – Here’s a roundup of today’s other top defense stories ending the week from conservative national security expert PAUL CRESPO.

Not the President’s Daily Brief, but almost as good – PAUL’S DEFENSE BRIEFING – the PDB:    

NATIONAL SECURITY

NSA’s top lawyer was removed from her post after being criticized by MAGA activist Laura Loomer.

The reliably pro-Israel GOP is scrambling to contain a generational revolt over foreign aid, antisemitism and the true meaning of “America First.”

HOMELAND SECURITY

Trump vows help for Afghan allies seeking safety, asylum and citizenship in U.S., but also suggested that a significant number of individuals involved in those programs may have other motives.

Construction of a tent complex at Fort Bliss designed to house up to 5,000 migrants has begun at the El Paso installation with a goal of detaining people there in August.

Incorrect altitude readings on the Army helicopter that collided with a passenger plane over Washington, D.C., contributed to the aircraft getting too close, but air traffic controllers warned about the hazards of helicopter traffic years before the crash.

DEFENSE POLITICS

Senate panel OKs plans for $852 billion in defense spending next year, a significant boost over White House goals and House lawmakers’ proposals.

In a break with past practice, President Trump now meets with candidates for promotion to the rank of four-star general.

SECDEF Hegseth team lashes out at DOD’s internal ‘Signalgate’ review. The attack on DOD’s inspector general appears designed to undermine the inquiry’s legitimacy — even before its findings are made public.

Army puts political operative in charge of public affairs. While it’s not unusual for political hands to manage messaging at the highest levels of DOD, the changes to military public affairs marks a broader institutional pivot.

Army Secretary directed West Point to review its hiring practices, bar outside groups from choosing employees and remove a newly announced hire who led the nation’s cybersecurity agency under Joe Biden.

Senate lawmakers confirmed former Nevada Senate candidate and wounded vet Sam Brown to serve as the head of cemetery and memorial affairs for the VA, ending a months-long standoff.

US POWER OVERSEAS

Europe has ‘understanding and assumption’ of U.S. military drawdown there, Estonian official says. More details about an anticipated U.S. troop reduction in Europe are expected in the fall.

Poland, Ukraine’s western neighbor, is expected to be the last country in Europe to face U.S. troop reductions, as Washington weighs scaling back its military presence across the continent.

Army 1st Brigade troops at a vast training ground in Bavaria, Germany used a one-way attack drone in a live-fire exercise, a first at the company level.

Army’s counter drone mega-exercise in Europe shows that senior officers need more data training.

Navy’s newest carrier strike group led by USS Ford is putting hard-earned lessons from combat in the Red Sea into practice in drills with allies, helping to shape its current eastern Mediterranean deployment.

IRAN THREAT/MIDDLE EAST

U.S. allies break with Trump to force diplomatic shift on Gaza. A chasm has opened up between the U.S. and its traditional allies on the future of the Israeli Palestinian conflict.

RUSSIA THREAT – UKRAINE WAR

Russia is building a drone empire. It has developed a far-reaching, multi-level approach to turbocharge the country’s development and production of drones with an eye to becoming a world leader in the field.

Questions about Russian nuclear submarine base after historic earthquake. The earthquake was only around 75 miles away from a cluster of key Russian naval bases, including ones that host nuclear ballistic missile subs.

Russia says its forces have captured the key town of Chasiv Yar in eastern Ukraine after nearly 18 months of fierce fighting in the area.

Before the war Ukraine’s military-industrial complex was almost entirely directed by the government and large defense contractors. However, Ukraine has quickly become a massive innovator in defense tech, especially with air, sea and ground drones, and small startups pushing the technological envelope alongside larger firms. Sadly, these critical weapons development lessons are not being learned by the West.

Germany’s armed forces reported a 28% surge in soldier recruits from January to late July, compared with the same period last year, bolstering plans to boost NATO defenses in response to an increased Russia threat.

EU member states expressed interest in at least $146 billion in EU-backed loans to pay for defense procurement.

Ukraine has arrested an air force officer accused of spying for Russia by leaking the locations and flight schedules of Western-supplied fighters.

CHINA THREAT

China Builds World’s Largest Hydroelectric Dam in Tibet: Threat or Innovation? Expected to cost around $167 billion, it will be the most expensive infrastructure project in the world.

NORTH KOREA THREAT

South Korean police in a city that hosts two major military bases, form special unit to handle cases involving the U.S. military to streamline coordination with U.S. military authorities.

SPACE THREAT

U.S.  should act now to mitigate conflict on the moon. Countries and companies seek to gain access to prime real estate for future space operations that may enable future scientific discovery and allow for significant commercial gain.

While the U.S. and its allies up their efforts to build out resilient multi-orbit, multi-constellation satellite communications that are harder for an enemy to disrupt, there are still technical and cost challenges.

INTERNATIONAL SECURITY

While the annual 2025 Shangri-La Dialogue security forum retained its usual stagecraft between the U.S. and China, this year’s exchanges revealed that the zero-sum logic driving great-power rivalry contrasts sharply with the pragmatic, interests-based approach favored by many middle powers and small states.

US MILITARY

Sig Sauer, which makes the M17 and M18 pistols used by the U.S. military, issued a response after facing criticism over concerns about safety of their sidearms.

DOD plans to prototype a hydrogen-powered system for naval vessels. If successful, the Expeditionary Hydrogen On Ship & Shore project, or EHOSS, could help fulfill a long-standing DOD goal of eliminating petroleum-based propulsion from military operations.

END of PDB

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of American Liberty News.

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