Mexico - February 2026

On 12 January the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the launch of a new office dedicated to drone and counter-drone technologies, stating that drones were “increasingly exploited by malicious actors”. This followed a meeting on 11 December of the Mexico-US Security Implementation Group (SIG), a forum created to coordinate efforts against drug trafficking, organised crime, and border threats, which addressed the increasing use of weaponised drones by Mexican criminal organisations, among other things. These developments reflect how cartels’ usage of drones is rapidly moving up the security agenda on both sides of the border.

The meeting, publicly announced by Mexico’s foreign ministry (SRE) on 16 December, followed the inaugural SIG session held in Texas on 26 September. It occurred against a backdrop of rising drone attacks across Mexico, including strikes on judicial and security institutions, in recent months. Cartels have used drones for years to move narcotics, scout border infrastructure, and track security forces. However, while early models used by cartels were commercially available quadcopters with limited range and payload, criminal groups have now been identified as deploying more advanced unmanned aerial systems (UASs), including first-person view (FPV) drones adapted for precision attacks and larger cargo drones capable of carrying heavier loads, according to the Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS).

In an article published on 8 December, Spanish newspaper El País cited figures from Mexico’s defence ministry recording 605 attacks by drones equipped with explosives between 2020 and mid-2023, with the highest numbers in the states of Guerrero, Michoacán, and Tamaulipas. These types of attacks increased from five in 2020 to 260 in the first half of 2023. By 2024, drone strikes had spread from rural conflict zones to urban centres and border cities. El País also reported that the data compiled by CSIS indicates that of the 77 drone attacks documented in 2024, more than half targeted civilians, while others struck rival criminal groups, police officers, and members of the armed forces.

Security analysts increasingly point to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 as a turning point for drone usage in conflict situations. The war has transformed drones from auxiliary tools into central instruments of warfare, responsible for an estimated 60-80% of frontline strikes, according to the Global Initiative against Transnational Organized Crime, with cheap, commercially available FPV drones enabling Ukrainian forces to attack Russian armoured vehicles, ships, and fortified positions from afar. In October 2025 the Global Initiative highlighted reports of a Mexican cartel member travelling to Ukraine to learn how to pilot FPVs, signalling cartels are actively seeking to apply such drone usage to criminal operations in Mexico.

According to CSIS analyst Henry Ziemer, the Cártel Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG) has tested FPV drones configured for direct-impact strikes. Imagery from April 2025 which circulated on social media and was assessed by independent analysts, appears to show an FPV drone with an explosive payload attempting an attack in cartel-controlled territory. Although the strike failed, it has been viewed as visual confirmation of FPV drone use by a Mexican cartel.

FPV drones offer cartels capabilities that could significantly alter their operational calculus. Unlike the more standard drop drones, FPVs can be guided through obstacles and into structures, enabling precision strikes against fortified targets without exposing gunmen to direct engagement. The use of drones has reached the point where cartels are seemingly investing in detecting incoming drones. For example, a member of the Los Mayitos faction of the Cártel de Sinaloa was photographed carrying a SkyFend counter-UAS jammer, valued at approximately US$100,000, which detect incoming drones.

The adoption of drone usage in Mexico’s criminal landscape has blurred the line between organised crime and armed conflict with cartels increasingly resembling hybrid actors, combining trafficking operations with paramilitary capabilities and terror tactics. This complicates law enforcement responses and raises the risk of civilian harm, particularly in urban areas.

To combat this, during the 11 December SIG meeting, both governments committed to enhancing intelligence sharing and linking analytical platforms to detect and respond to drone threats along the border, which Mexico’s foreign ministry described as an “emerging challenge to global security.” The DHS’ new drone office will also likely seek to track and target drone activity by drug cartels, particularly in the US-Mexico border region.

Murders

In January, the government announced that the average daily number of murders in December 2025 was 52.4, down 40% from 86.9 in September 2024, the month before Sheinbaum took office and the lowest figure since 2016.