Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum hailed an agreement reached with the U.S. to curb the illegal flow of weapons from the latter, claiming it is the first time that Washington made a commitment to expand operations in its own territory to this end.
The agreement, dubbed "Operation Firewall," follows a visit by Secretary of State Marco Rubio. "For the first time, the U.S. recognizes it has to conduct operations to control guns or the illegal trafficking of guns to Mexico," Sheinbaum said.
The agreement includes a new platform to safely exchange information, which, according to Infobae, will allow authorities to identify suspicious aerial shipments. "Washington always says drugs and migratory flows are central, but we now said guns need to be discussed first," Sheinbaum said.
There is abundant evidence about the flow of weapons bought legally in the U.S. to Mexico. The latter's Defense Secretariat said in July it had located 11 gun smuggling routes from the U.S. to Mexico.
In a report, the entity said it was able to spot the routes as a result of cooperation with the General Prosecutor's Office, and that most of them are used by criminal organizations. Overall, authorities were able to seize almost 6,000 guns between November 2024 and May this year.
The document adds that 43% of the guns seized come from Texas. An additional 22% come from Arizona and 9% from California.
Mexico's Security Minister Omar García Harfuch said earlier this year that 75% of the weapons recovered between February and May came from the U.S., a figure also acknowledged by U.S. officials.
The U.S. Supreme Court blocked in early June a $10 billion lawsuit filed by Mexico against U.S. manufacturers for allegedly helping fuel cartel violence in the country with their business practices. Mexico, in fact, has just one store where people can legally buy guns.
The Associated Press detailed that the ruling was unanimous. It followed appeals from manufacturers like Smith & Wesson, Berretta, Colt and Glock. Mexico had requested justices to let the case continue, claiming it was in its early stages.
The country accused the companies of knowing their guns were being smuggled into Mexico and seizing the opportunity to increase their profits.
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