US Military involvement in Mexico and Chiapas from 1990 to 1994


EQUIPMENT

*25 military vehicles from the US crossed the border at Ciudad Juarez the previous day. (December 6, 1995 Diario de Juarez)

*Secretary of Defense William Perry maintained that his country will collaborate in the improvement of our defense capacity in air and maritime space in the modernization of military hardware and in the improvement of personnel for combating the drug trade. He insisted that the bilateral relationship, aided before on two bases--the political and commercial-now will also be founded on one more, that is, on the question of security. After pointing out commercial and economic collaboration--such as the NAFTA and the recent aid Mexico received due to the economic crisis of last December- -the chief of the US Armed Force maintained, ''when it comes to stability and security, our destinies are also indissoluble linked. " Members of the United States retinue asserted that Mexico bought a radar worth seven million dollars as well as 12 Huey-H1 helicopters to fight drug trafficking. (La Jornada, October 24, 1995)

*The US wants to rent 12 Huey helicopters to Mexico (New York Times, September 24, 1995)

*The government of President Ernesto Zedillo has requested the purchase of airplanes, armament, radars and communication systems worth a total of $27 million to reinforce the capacities of the Armed Forces and Federal Attorney General. see attached list (El Financiero, August 29, 1995)

*In 1991, the United States Army donated a total of 609 vehicles and diverse war material to the [Mexican] Armed Forces La Jornada, July 1995

*Mexico's U.S. supplied military helicopter fleet could be nearly doubled, to almost 200, by Pentagon transfers, including several dozen state of the art Blackhawk choppers. (New York Times May 23, 1995)

*Mexican army has been spending "considerable amounts" on Navstar GPS guidance systems, a critical weapon in satellite warfare (Jane's 1995 Intelligence Review

* From 1988 to 1992 the US exported over $214 million in arms to the PRI government, an amount 16 times higher than France, the second-place supplier (El Proceso, December 12, 1994)

*In 1994 Clinton authorized a new arms export package for Mexico, including over $64 million of sophisticated electronic equipment and satellite guided UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters

*U.S. Huey and Bell 212 helicopters along with C-130 Hercules troop transport planes were used against the Zapatistas in 1994

IMMIGRATION CONTROL

*In Nogales, Arizona, the INS practiced responding to an "immigrant invasion from Mexico". They practiced erecting cyclone-fence corrals, herding immigrants through them for emergency processing and loading them onto bus convoys for travel to mass detention centers. It is the third set of exercises this year---previously conducted in Orlando and McAllen, Texas. Immigrants eventually could be held in prisons, military bases or tent cities. (New York Times, December 8, 1995)

* Donald E. Schulz, an associate professor of National Security with the US Army's War College stated that "a hostile government could put the US investments in danger [in Mexico], jeopardize access to oil, produce a flood of political refugees and economic migrants to the north. And under such circumstances, the United States would feel obligated to militarize its southern border." (December 6, 1995 La Jornada)

* A US contingency plan "to contain a possible wave of immigrants... provides military logistical support to the Border Patrol, training exercises [by the INS and the Border Patrol], detention of immigrants in inactive military bases and construction of concrete barricades on the border with Mexico. A pilot project to detain 380 immigrants for up to 18 months is planned for Miramar Naval Station near San Diego. Training exercises covering actions in the countryside, the rapid processing of undocumented persons and their transportation to detention centers were to be carried out in Nogales, Arizona and McAllen, Texas during November. (November 12, 1995 El Financiero)

TRAINING OF OFFICERS

*A senior US defense official briefly mentions that there are "routine exchanges of officers attending [US] military schools and [Mexican] military schools", and that "[US] senior officers visit Mexico as part of the US Capstone program. The Mexican military routinely visit the US' National Defense University". (October 20, 1995 press briefing)

*There are US advisors "preparing" counterinsurgency commandos or paramilitary groups among indigenous organizations not affiliated with the Zapatistas in order that they, at the appropriate time, struggle against the Zapatista Army of National Liberation...The [Mexican] government has replaced the "armed wing" with the federal Attorney General and state public security bodies, led by "old masters" such as General Arturo Acosta Chaparro [who directed the army's massacre of students in xxx on October 2, 1969, and who was trained in the US' School of the Americas]... (La Jornada, November 7, 1995, article regarding Radio Universidad's interview with Sub. Marcos)

INTELLIGENCE EFFORTS

* Major (later Lieutenant Colonel) Propp is named as the head of a Secret or Covert Operations team operating since June 1994 in Chiapas. He was detected in San Cristobal de las Casas since that time and was in Guadalupe Tepeyac with the Mexican military unit that took that village on February 10, 1995. He also was seen in San Quintin..It is confirmed that the United States government interfered in communications amongst the EZLN delegation to the dialogues in San Andres and passing the information to the government's delegation. Another report is that the United States Army is acting as an intermediary in bringing Argentinean mercenaries to Chiapas; people have reported them with the paramilitary groups, the "white guards". (La Brecha de Uruguay, interview with Sub. Marcos, Oct. 28, 1995)

*Major John Kevin Kord, and Lieutenant Colonel Alan Hasson Sanchez are US military men identified as being in Chiapas during the Mexican military offensive in February. (El Norte Chiapas, February 12, 1995)

*"American intelligence services" actively assisted in determining the (alleged) identity of Zapatista leader subcomandante Marcos (New York Times, February 10, 1995)

*[FBI] staff in Mexico participate in training Mexicans, in the development of common strategies against organized crimes and in the prosecution of crimes involving American citizens, stated Paul Bresson, spokesperson for the FBI. The head of the FBI team in Mexico is Stanley Pimental, and he has a handful of special agents working under him including James Wells, Gilberto Contreras and Ornelo Flores. Mexico is one of 21 countries in which the FBI operates and has one of the largest staff--approximately 10 people. (El Financiero, November 6, 1994)

*The CIA fields a substantial, expanding network of agents and covert operatives in southeastern Chiapas (ex-CIA officers John Stockwell and Ralph McGehee)


Consolidated list of Equipment Needs to Combat Drug Trafficking By the Distinct Entities of the Federal Government

Published by El Financiero, August 29, 1995

1. Secretary of National Defense (Sedena)

$81,839,427 Purchase of Radars
$72 million Phase III TPS-70, Radar TPS-63
Phase IV TPS-70
Electrical, Hydraulic and Sanitation Infrastructure
$ 9,564,729 for the three radar sites
$274,698 Communication equipment for the three radar sites

2. Secretary of the Navy

$47,500,000 Purchase of 2 Dornier 228-212 airplanes with
$18,000,000 Flir night vision equipment, Comint Communication System and Ocean Master Radar
$4,501,950 Purchase of 15 Search and Detect Equipment with Flir ANIAAQ-21 Night Vision and Sparry Primus 500 Radar Detection Equipment
$16,289,925 Purchase of 2 BO 105 CBS Super Five Helicopters and 11,987 M-16-A2 Automatic rifles, 5.6X 45 millimeter caliber
$ 8,750,000 Purchase of 5 MI-8 Helicopters equipped with Flir night vision, Comit communication systems and Ocean Master radar

3. Federal Attorney General (PGR)

$15,000,000 Equipment for a Satellite Network
$5,500,000 Master Station and Remote stations for 52 connection sites
$6,000,000 Afis System to make idenfications from fingerprints, voice prints, and aliases
$500,000 Security Equipment for voice, fax and data communications
$3,000,000 Fail-safe computer system (hardware & sofware)

Center for Drug Control Planning (PGR)

Hardware and software and encoded telephone $ unknown and fax equipment for communications
$93,000,000 National Institute to Combat Drugs
$36,609 VHF-FM radios, HF-ALE radios and airplanes, information equipment

General Director of Aerial Services

$11,500,000 for 3 Factory-Services UH-IM helicopters and parts
2 Donated Kaman SH-2G helicopters
($8,000,000 aproximate value) for 2 Donated Grumman E-2C helicopers
$20,000,000 Funds to Repair Bell 206/02615/212 helicopters
$1,500,000 Funds to repair fumigation equipment
$5,000,000 Training and specialized courses for pilots
$38,000,000 Supply of parts, repairs and aerial equipment to provide ground support to the general fleet of the PGR
$ 1,500,000 Support for the renovation and maintenance of rural bases
$13,000,000 2 Flight Simulators
$1,000,000 Security Equipment for Technical Personnel and Pilots

GRAND TOTAL $237,000,000


CHRONOLOGICAL LIST OF EQUIPMENT AND SOPHISTICATED ARMAMENTS ACQUIRED BY THE MEXICAN GOVERNMENT

(based on an article from La Jornada, August 21, 1995)

1988-1992:

2000 HUMMER Armored troop transport vehicles

1990:

7 ARAVA planes
100 HUMMER Armored vehicles
100 MACK armored artillery vehicles
5 MACK-TALLER armored vehicles

1991:

710 HUMMER Armored Vehicles
60 M925 A2 5 Ton Tactical Trucks
2 SIKORSKY Helicopters
13 PILATUS PC-7 Planes
4 PORTER Turbo Planes
(Vehicles and war materials donated by the US Army)
400 Jeeps
32 Ambulances
106 Pickup trucks
15 Transport Trailers
15 Water trucks
11 Ambulances

1992:

597 HUMMER Armored Vehicles
10 McDONNELL DOUGLAS Helicopters
4 ARAVA Planes
15 MAULE Planes
1000 Parachutes for Paratroopers
424 HK-19 3-40mm Machine guns ("for military units in the southeast")
430 HIGH EXPLOSIVE Grenades (same destiny)
26 COBRA I anti-riot vehicles

1993:

1600 HUMMER Armored troop transport carriers
5 Rapid Attack Vehicles
221 CLE vehicles
332 HK-19 3-40mm machine guns
266 Electric prods
4585 Night sticks
21 Electric shields
84 Anti projectile "escopetas"
17,784 HK-19 Grenades
22,200 Tear Gas Grenades
26 COBRA I Anti-riot vehicles
26 CADILLAC armored cars

1994:

(Purchases of armament ideal for land and jungle combat)

6 SIKORSKY Helicopters
17 PILATUS PC-7 Planes
38 BELL Helicopters
22 MCDONELL DOUGLAS Helicopters
2 BELL-206 Planes
16 MAULE Planes
4 ARVANA Planes
1 HERCULES C-130 Plane
2 SCHWEIZER Planes
10 Artillery weapons for BELL Helicopters
10 Artillery weapons for MD-530 Helicopters
(Field Equipment, Rations and Night Vision)
660,000 combat rations
660,000 combat rations
473,000 field sets
120,000 Army belts
102,000 KEVLAR helmets
70,000 Canteens
70,000 USA model mess kits
2,232 AITOR survival knives
2,232 Machetes
20,672 Flack jackets
608 LASER targets
208 telescopic lens for night vision
3297 HUMMER Troop armored vehicles
110 MACK armored vehicles
168 DNC-1 Vehicles
90 DN-2 Armored vehicles
57 RAM CHARGERS converted into VHS-WT-500
Donations of Arms and Weaponry
270 MK-1 cohetes
500 BUNDICE lanzacohetes
859 HK-19 40mm Machine guns
500 Semiautomatic rifles
374 38 calibre escopetas
192,874 M430 40mm calibre grenades
40,000 M918 40mm calibre grenades
85,678 M781 40mm calibre grenades
109 Telescopic lens
Donations for the Military Police
2516 Anti-riot
2233 Granade carrier
3466 Gas masks
2974 Night sticks
2993 Helmets
1365 Electric shields
3266 Flame throwers
100 Anti-riot
100 Anti-riot
30 CL vehicles with catapult
30 Vehicles with BULLDOZER to dissipate protests or disturbances.

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