Russian soldiers march in the Independence Day military parade in Mexico City in 2023. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS THE WATCH STAFF As Moscow rapidly expanded a spy nest at its embassy in Mexico City, Russian migrants surged across the Mexico border into the United States and Russian media outlets blanketed the Mexican people with Moscow’s malign propaganda. After the start of the Russia-Ukraine war in February 2022, the Kremlin set its sights on Mexico to gain closer access to U.S. intelligence and influence. The Kremlin added 37 diplomatic workers — an increase of about 75% — to its existing Mexican embassy…
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Federal prosecutors said in March 2025 that Mexican cartel leader Rafael Caro-Quintero may face the death penalty for the 1985 murder of a United States Drug Enforcement Administration agent. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Federal prosecutors are considering seeking the death penalty against Mexican drug lord Rafael Caro Quintero in a sprawling case that includes the 1985 killing of an agent of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. Assistant U.S. Attorney Saritha Komatireddy confirmed that capital punishment remains on the table as a possibility when pressed by a judge hearing the case in Brooklyn, New York, federal court in March 2025. The…
Italian Adm. Giuseppe Cavo Dragone led a NATO military delegation to Colorado in March 2025 to learn about the operations of U.S. Space Command, U.S. Northern Command, North American Aerospace Defense Command and other U.S. military installations. U.S. SPACE COMMAND THE WATCH STAFF A large delegation of NATO representatives, headed by an Italian admiral, spent three days touring U.S. Space Command (USSPACECOM), the joint headquarters of U.S. Northern Command (USNORTHCOM) and North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), and other military installations in Colorado in March 2025. The tour enhanced the trans-Atlantic relationship of the alliance and shared the scope of…
The motorized 4th Infantry Division’s 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team now can patrol the Mexico-United States border, accompanying and transporting U.S Customs and Border Protection agents, who will carry out any required law enforcement duties. U.S. ARMY THE WATCH STAFF The motorized Stryker brigade, deployed this year to the Mexico-United States border, now can conduct patrols along the 3,145-kilometer border. A March 20, 2025, order from the U.S. Department of Defense authorized the brigade to transport U.S. Customs and Border Protection (USCBC) agents on patrols to reduce the flow of illegal migrants, drugs and other contraband. Previously, the 2,400 Soldiers…
DIÁLOGO AMERICAS ILLUSTRATION DIÁLOGO AMERICAS In its recent report, “The Fifth Wave,” think tank Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime warns of the transformation of organized crime. In addition to reaching new levels of sophistication thanks to drones and artificial intelligence, criminal networks are increasingly infiltrating legal markets. According to the report, in the future “markets will be murky and traditional distinctions between the licit and the illicit will be less discernible. Legal businesses and criminal enterprises could become indistinguishable from one another.” A significant example in Latin America is that of Brazil. According to the Brazilian Forum on Public Security,…
A variant of the C-130 warplane, the LC-130 Hercules or “Skibird,” landed on ice in March 2025 in the Canadian Arctic, the first such landing in decades. U.S. AIR NATIONAL GUARD THE WATCH STAFF A U.S. Air Force LC-130, or “Skibird,” landed on ice in March 2025, signaling a new approach to operational flexibility in harsh Arctic conditions. The New York Air National Guard landed the plane on freshwater ice, the first such maneuver in decades, during an exercise designed to test Arctic force projection in Canada’s Northwest Territories. The Skibird, a variant of the Air Force’s transport workhorse, the…
A cargo ship sails past the Panama Canal’s Port of Balboa, managed by CK Hutchison Holdings, in Panama City on March 13, 2025. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS THE WATCH STAFF Panama has notified China that it is pulling out of its One Belt, One Road (OBOR) initiative, the communist country’s expansive infrastructure and investment program. Panama was the first Latin American country to join OBOR, in November 2017, and now it is the first to leave. On February 6, 2025, Panama’s government notified China of a 90-day notice of withdrawal from OBOR, Newsweek reported. Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino said the…
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announced a $4.2 billion radar purchase from Australia while visiting the Canadian Arctic in March 2025. CANADIAN PRESS VIA THE ASSOCIATED PRESS THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on March 25 announced a radar purchase from Australia and an expansion of military operations in the Arctic while visiting Canada’s far north. The prime minister’s office said the $4.2 billion Over-the-Horizon Radar system will provide early warning radar coverage from the Canada-United States border into the Arctic. Carney announced the purchase at a military base in the capital of the Inuit-governed territory of Nunavut…
This intercepted vessel was transporting 234 males and 43 females, including a minor. ROYAL TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS POLICE FORCE THE WATCH STAFF In an operation supported by forces from three nations, hundreds of Haitian migrants on a boat that was overloaded and unfit for travel were intercepted about 15 miles south of Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI), on the night of March 14, 2025. A United States Air Support (USAS) Unit conducting routine aerial surveillance detected the vessel and notified the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force (RTCIPF). The RTCIPF Marine Branch dispatched two response vessels: the…
Mexican National Guard members carry a ladder they found while on patrol along the Mexico-U.S. border in Ciudad Juarez in February 2025. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS THE WATCH STAFF The commander of U.S. Northern Command (USNORTHCOM) and the Mexican national defense secretary have agreed to undertake cooperative patrols along the Mexico-U.S. border. The meeting between Gen. Gregory M. Guillot and Gen. Ricardo Trevilla Trejo underscored the increasing collaboration between the countries to secure the border and decrease illegal migration, gun trafficking and drug smuggling. The mutual security of the 3,145-kilometer border was the focus of the February 2025 conversation between Guillot…