No War in Mexico, Even if Drug Cartels Are Terror Groups | Opinion

In the wake of the recent kidnapping and murder of U.S. citizens in Matamoros, Mexico, several prominent politicians have called for the designation of Mexican cartels as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) and the subsequent deployment of U.S. military forces to fight those FTOs. Those are two very different things: one is rational and may be helpful and the other is reckless and certainly unhelpful.

Many well-meaning people refer to these organized crime networks as "drug cartels," but that is too simple. These complex organizations exist solely to make as much money as possible and will do anything to get it: kidnapping, extortion, torture, murder, and stealing fuel are all common tactics, as well as moving drugs, people, weapons, and money across our borders. The better label is the government's own—transnational criminal organizations, or TCOs. According to the Drug Enforcement Agency, they may be based in Mexico, but these TCOs operate in every major U.S. city and all 50 of our states, including Alaska and Hawaii. In addition to fentanyl, they move huge quantities of heroin, cocaine, and methamphetamine across our borders. The TCOs also tax and control the vast majority of undocumented aliens and asylum-seekers who come through Mexico and end up on U.S. soil.

Are these TCOs terrorists? Hanging a bunch of headless bodies off a bridge or dissolving victims in barrels of acid certainly look like the work of terrorists to me. Terrorists use violence or the threat of violence to influence others, primarily for political aims. One could argue that Mexican TCOs do not have political aims in the United States, but they certainly do in Mexico: they fight the security forces to gain room to operate and they fight other TCOs to eliminate competition.

Innocent Mexicans and Americans are caught up in the violence. The State Department's three requirements for an FTO designation are the organization be foreign, terrorist in nature, and harmful to U.S. citizens. The Mexican FCOs meet those criteria. In addition to the Matamoros and countless other murders, one could easily attribute the majority of U.S. fentanyl deaths (107,375 in 2022 alone) to Mexican TCOs. Mexican TCOs should be designated as FTOs. The biggest benefit of such a designation would better enable us to go after and interdict what the TCOs really care about, which is the flow of money.

This comes with a caveat. Any labeling of the Mexican TCOs as terrorists must not trigger the uninvited deployment of U.S. troops to Mexico or attacks on Mexican soil. Whether it is through a specious reading of the 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force against terrorists that was enacted after the attacks of 9/11, or any new war authorization, the uninvited use of military force in Mexico must be thoroughly rejected.

We may see use of force in Mexico as a means of protecting our own citizens, but most Mexicans would view it as an invasion. Mexico is a sovereign country and if we send our troops across the border without Mexican consent or launch attacks from afar, it could be an act of war. In addition to problems for our border states and commerce (Mexico is our largest trading partner, followed by Canada, and China), we would cause incredible problems for the 1.6 million US citizens who currently live in Mexico. Even talking about such a deployment is reckless and does significant harm to our relationship. Our military, law enforcement agencies, and intelligence organizations have deep and important relationships with their counterparts in Mexico, and frankly, we are their partner of choice. Doubt that? The Mexican Army drives HMMWVs and flies Blackhawk helicopters.

A host of three and four-letter agencies operate in close concert with their Mexican counterparts throughout that country. It is in our mutual interests to do so. Stability is essential to trade and the general security of the hemisphere. But rash talk about sending our military into Mexico only causes problems. It drives a wedge into deep, vibrant, largely behind-the-scenes relationships, and it reinforces Mexican stereotypes about their gringo neighbors that have been prevalent since the War of 1846 and the punitive expedition of 1916.

We desperately need immigration reform, and we have real problems with border security. I see those problems every day. Mexican TCOs cause many of those problems and there could be benefits to designating them as FTOs. Grandstanding politicians should refrain, however, from reckless calls to send our military uninvited into Mexico. Such talk will only hurt us and our partners. It's time to build bridges rather than blow them up.

Lieutenant General Jeffrey Buchanan retired after a 37-year Army career in 2019. In addition to commanding the 6,000 troops on the southwest border, he led the military operation in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria and had four tours in Iraq and one in Afghanistan. He is a senior advisor for the Vet Voice Foundation and he and his wife live on a small ranch outside of Patagonia, Arizona, about 13 miles from the Mexican border.

The views expressed in this article are the writer's own.