Authorities in the Mexican state of Chihuahua are spending millions of dollars in a high-tech fight to curb the illicit activities of transnational criminal organizations. At the heart of this push is the Sentinel Tower, a 20-story building nearing completion in Ciudad Juárez, the Latin Times online newspaper reported in May 2025. When finished, the surveillance network that will operate from the building — the tallest in the El Paso,Texas-Juárez region — will have at its disposal high-tech surveillance equipment, including facial-recognition software, license plate readers and 4,400 mobile cameras. A helipad is atop the tower, which is part of…
The Watch
As technology for unmanned aerial systems (UAS), or drones, evolves rapidly, U.S. companies remain at the forefront in countering them. In April 2025, DZYNE Technologies of Irvine, California, unveiled its latest counter-UAS (c-UAS) system for European allies: the Dronebuster 4-EU. The Dronebuster is a hand-held, nonkinetic device that sends electromagnetic signals to disrupt or disable UAS navigation and control. It also can spoof or simulate global navigation satellite signals, potentially ordering the drone to return to its starting point or shift direction. Weighing 2.25 kilograms, it has an effective range of 1 kilometer. DZYNE’s detect, track, identify, mitigate kit upgrades…
Mexican authorities destroyed three synthetic drug labs in Sinaloa, seizing more than 4,000 kilograms of methamphetamine and nearly 1,000 kilograms of other synthetic drugs in May 2026. Meanwhile, across the country, naval and state police raided cartel sea-based smuggling depots in beach communities in the southern state of Chiapas. The security actions demonstrate the continued resolve of Mexico to confront transnational criminal organizations (TCOs). The federal government, through the Secretariat of the Navy (MARINA) and the federal security forces, is “keeping its promise to collaborate with local authorities to uphold the rule of law and combat illicit activities that endanger…
A group of United States senators traveled to four Arctic nations in May 2026 to highlight the growing strategic importance of the region and demonstrate U.S. resolve to keep adversarial forces at bay. The eight senators, divided equally along partisan lines and led by Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Jeanne Shaheen, said their trip was to gain a deeper understanding of the region. The U.S. has 1.17 million square kilometers of Arctic territory, fourth in size — behind Canada, Denmark and Russia — of the eight nations with High North real estate. The delegation — which also included Sens. Katie Britt…
The United States Coast Guard will grow its specialized interdiction teams and set up its own Special Missions Command (SMC) to oversee the deployable forces. “We are forging our most elite operators into a single, razor-sharp instrument of national power,” said Adm. Kevin Lunday, commandant of the Coast Guard. The new command will strengthen the readiness, operational effectiveness and interoperability of the Coast Guard, which is responding to more national emergencies and events as the demand for specialized forces increases. The Coast Guard chose the existing Coast Guard C5I Service Center facility in Kearneysville, West Virginia, as the future site of the SMC. The command…
The Utah National Guard collaborated with local partners in April 2026 to respond to a simulated attack on the United States. National Guard units responded to attacks on a water plant, a train and other events associated with an assault on critical infrastructure and heavily trafficked commercial sites. The first-ever exercise was dubbed Operation Wolverine in homage to the 1980’s film “Red Dawn,” which depicted a Cold War-era Russian-Cuban invasion of the U.S. “Exercise Wolverine builds on that concept, simulating what happens when an adversary targets the U.S. homeland. The exercise focused on responding to potential threats at home, testing…
A high-level Royal Bahamas Defence Force (RBDF) delegation visited the Netherlands in April 2026 to discuss the continued maintenance and modernization of the RBDF fleet with its Dutch shipbuilding partner, including three vessels undergoing repairs. The first of those ships, the HMBS Rolly Gray, is due to return to service by the end of the year. Damen, the Dutch shipbuilder, has played a crucial role in upgrading RBDF naval assets for more than a decade. The permanent secretary of The Bahamas Ministry of National Security said the relationship has benefited the Caribbean nation. “Permanent Secretary (Bridget) Hepburn opined that having…
A British aircraft carrier led a NATO anti-submarine exercise in the Norwegian Sea in May 2026 at a time of heightened activity in the region by Russian military forces. HMS Prince of Wales took part in the alliance’s Dynamic Mongoose exercise between May 18 and 29. The High North anti-submarine warfare exercise trains NATO forces to detect and counter enemy submarines through multithreat scenarios for submarines, surface ships and aircraft. The United Kingdom has made the defense of NATO’s northern flank a central pillar of its defense strategy. “This 2026 deployment delivers a clear signal of the U.K.’s steadfast commitment…
The United States sanctioned three people accused of money laundering and cash smuggling for the Cartel del Noreste (CDN), a foreign terrorist organization (FTO), in April 2026 after an extensive investigation by the Homeland Security Task Force and Drug Enforcement Administration. The U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) also sanctioned two Mexican casinos. “As President Trump has made clear, Treasury will use all tools to protect our nation from violent cartels looking to reign terror on innocent Americans,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a news release. “Treasury will continue to target the diverse revenue streams that cartels rely…
Each day was an exercise in survival at Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center (JPMRC) 26-02 in Alaska, as United States and Canadian Soldiers trained in Arctic warfighting on an unforgiving battlefield while reinforcing their focus on lethality, readiness and operational capabilities. Getting through each day and night was the first order of business. The air reached as low as minus 40 degrees Celsius. At that temperature, exposed skin can freeze in less than 10 minutes — even faster if wind chill makes it feel colder. “Everything’s harder in the Arctic,” Maj. Gen. John Cogbill, commanding general of the 11th Airborne…