WHINSEC has become an integral part of security collaboration to counter threats such as drug trafficking, arms smuggling and money laundering. MILTON MARIANI RODRIGUEZ/WHINSEC ADELA GARCIA DUNCAN/WHINSEC PUBLIC AFFAIRS The Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation (WHINSEC) has emerged as a premier security cooperation tool that delivers information-sharing techniques, joint training exercises and intelligence cooperation to counter a multitude of shared challenges. A U.S. Department of Defense institute with the Secretary of the Army designated as the executive agent, the institute helps identify and promptly address emerging security threats. WHINSEC, based in Fort Moore, Georgia, facilitates capacity building and professional…
The Watch
A Mexican Blackhawk helicopter flies over a military parade for the 198th anniversary of Mexico’s independence at Zocalo Square in Mexico City on September 16, 2008. The Blackhawk is among several U.S.-supplied aircraft procured by the Mexican Armed Forces. AFP/GETTY IMAGES DR. INIGO GUEVARA MOYANO/JANES STRATEGIC SERVICES Mexico and the United States share much more than a 3,219-kilometer border and a complex history. Both nations share mutual problems and threats, but more importantly, they now share a common will on how to implement bilateral solutions. While the militaries of both nations have traditionally had significantly different roles and missions, both…
Mexican military personnel participate in courses at the Mexican Joint Training Center for Peacekeeping Operations. DIÁLOGO AMÉRICAS SECRETARIAT OF NATIONAL DEFENSE Mexico for decades has voiced its commitment to multilateral institutions that work to ensure international security and peace. Mexican military personnel participated in some of the first United Nations peacekeeping operations by contributing four military observers to the Balkans from 1947-1950 and six officers to operations in Kashmir in 1949. Although internal politics made Mexico reluctant to participate in foreign conflicts after that, the U.N. announced on September 24, 2014, that Mexico would officially resume its contributions to U.N.…
A U.S. Marine watches a Mexican Hawker Beechcraft T-6C Texan II aircraft practice interdiction operations during Tradewinds 2022 at Chetumal Bay, Mexico. MEXICAN SECRETARIAT OF NATIONAL DEFENSE. Photos by SGT. MATTHEW TEUTSCH/U.S. MARINE CORPS Drug trafficking is a global problem that affects all societies, including Mexico, where the geography includes large mountainous terrain and remote areas. That combination makes the airspace one of the most frequently used routes by organized crime to transport illegal substances. Airspace offers logistical advantages for drug traffickers, resulting in more direct and virtually obstacle-free routes that let criminals avoid road checkpoints and seaport inspections. In…
For 200 years, the Heroic Military Academy of Mexico has given young military leaders the tools to accomplish their missions. MEXICAN SECRETARIAT OF NATIONAL DEFENSE. Photos by the Government of Mexico Mexico’s Heroic Military Academy is an educational institution founded in October 1823 by Gen. José Joaquín de Herrera, minister of war and Navy, who by decree ordered the creation of an Army officer training facility. Now 200 years later, this historic institution has maintained its purpose of educating and preparing cadets to effectively fulfill their missions. The origins of the institution were derived from Spain and other European countries,…
A group of 145 Haitian immigrants was intercepted in August 2023 during a joint engagement by Operation Bahamas Turks and Caicos, the U.S. Coast Guard, the Royal Bahamas Defence Force, and officials from the Turks and Caicos Islands. ROYAL BAHAMAS DEFENCE FORCE COMMODORE Raymond E. KING/ROYAL BAHAMAS DEFENCE FORCE The Royal Bahamas Defence Force (RBDF), the sole military institution in the Commonwealth of the Bahamas, is tasked with the defense, security and protection of the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. The RBDF maintains law and order in conjunction with law enforcement agencies and is responsible for border protection against transnational…
Coast Guard vessels return to port after an offshore exercise in April 2022. CPL. ANDRE PLACE/ROYAL BERMUDA REGIMENT LT. COL. BENJAMIN L. BEASLEY/COMMANDER, BERMUDA REGIMENT At 54 square kilometers, Bermuda inhabits an isolated yet geostrategic location 1,022 kilometers off the North Carolina coast. It played an outsized role for the United Kingdom during the 18th and 19th centuries as a staging point on the way to the U.K.’s New World colonies, and for the United States, from World War II until the 1990s as a base for Cold War anti-submarine operations. Bermuda has been self-governed since 1620 and has the…
TCI Regiment Soldiers conduct surveillance during a training exercise in defense of the Turks and Caicos Islands. TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS GOVERNMENT LT. COL. ENNIS GRANT/TCI REGIMENT The Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) occupy a vast expanse of shallow water and comprise 40 islands — eight of them populated — spanning 948 square kilometers. This British Overseas Territory has 45,000 residents and plays an increasingly important role in maintaining the rules-based order of the Caribbean region and the southeastern approaches to the U.S. homeland. TCI’s defense and security are the responsibility of the United Kingdom, but much of the power…
DIÁLOGO AMERICAS Russian disinformation campaigns are spreading in Latin America, raising concerns for regional stability, due to the growing presence of Russia in the information and geopolitical sphere. The Kremlin is leading efforts to exert influence in the “global south” through the media. This strategy seeks to promote non-progressive values and question the liberal democratic legacy in Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, and Latin America, Mexican magazine Letras Libres reported. Russian media such as Sputnik and RT are notable examples of this strategy, Letras Libres indicated. Although they are the most visible elements, they are not the only participants in the disinformation war being waged on television, radio, print media, social…
A U.S. Arctic expert argued in an op-ed in May 2024 that the United States should continue to cooperate with Russia on scientific projects. AFP/GETTY IMAGES THE WATCH STAFF With the ongoing effects of climate change on Arctic ecosystems, collaborative multinational scientific projects remain vital to the region, necessitating a resumed cooperation between Western Arctic nations and Russia, despite the latter’s increasingly authoritarian and expansionist behavior. While such normalized relations in specialized fields may be unlikely in the near term, it is imperative that the U.S. and its allies try. Troy Bouffard, director of the Center for Arctic Security and…