𝐉𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐒𝐂𝐎 𝐍𝐄𝐖 𝐆𝐄𝐍𝐄𝐑𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐂𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐄𝐋 𝐌𝐄𝐌𝐁𝐄𝐑𝐒 𝐉𝐎𝐈𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐔𝐊𝐑𝐀𝐈𝐍𝐄 𝐌𝐈𝐋𝐈𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐘 𝐓𝐎 𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐍 𝐃𝐑𝐎𝐍𝐄 𝐓𝐄𝐂𝐇𝐍𝐎𝐋𝐎𝐆𝐘

              

Drone training in the Ukraine, the Brownsville Observer editor

The Brownsville Observer, using the Borderland Beat and the TWZ Newsletter as sources, reports that Mexico's drug cartels are learning drone technology by fighting in the Ukraine War. 

The First-Person View (FPV) drone academies in Ukraine teach drone assembly, electronic warfare, and low-altitude strikes using simulators and live drills and their effectiveness has not gone unnoticed by Mexico’s drug cartels, particularly the Jalisco New Generation (CJNG), joining the war effort to learn drone techniques.

A memo from Mexico’s National Intelligence Centre (CNI) warned Ukraine’s SBU that Spanish-speaking “volunteers” could be entering the warzone to study FPV drone tactics, not to support Ukraine. 

Officials believe cartels are bypassing vetting by using fake IDs, private military contractors, and shell companies. One figure, “Aguila-7,” allegedly used a false Salvadoran passport to train at the city of Lviv's Killhouse Academy and was later linked to a special forces unit with known cartel defections.

Ukraine has since ramped up background checks at drone academies, cross-referencing foreign applicants with Interpol and DEA records. Several individuals reportedly showed ties to narco-paramilitary groups, raising fears that Ukraine's war is becoming a training ground for future cartel drone warfare.

The CJNG has already deployed FPV drones in regions like Nayarit, targeting a Sinaloa cartel leader. 

“Flying FPV drones is closer to piloting than playing with toys,” said an analyst to the TWZ Newsletter.  “That’s why cartel operatives are seeking experience in Ukraine.”

“We welcomed volunteers in good faith,” an officer explained. “Now we see Ukraine becoming a global classroom for weaponized drones, some come here to learn how to kill with a $400 rig, then monetize it elsewhere.”

As cartels move from rifles to precision drone strikes, the skills picked up in Ukraine simply add to the threat in Mexico. 

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