A Jan. 22 article for Associated Press reports that the Mexican government is demanding an investigation into how Mexican drug cartels are ending up in possession of U.S. military-grade weapons. According to the article, “the Mexican army said in June that it had seized 221 fully automatic machine guns, 56 grenade launchers and a dozen rocket launchers from drug cartels since late 2018.” These weapons are not available for civilian use inside the U.S.
Mexican Foreign Secretary Alicia Bárcena is quoted as saying: “The [Mexican] Defense Department has warned the United States about weapons entering Mexico that are for the exclusive use of the U.S. army. It is very urgent that an investigation into this be carried out.” The Mexican government estimates that 500,000 weapons, both military- and non-military-grade, are trafficked into the country from the U.S. each year. Mexico currently has a $10 billion lawsuit in U.S. federal court against major U.S gun makers it claims are facilitating this weapons trafficking.
