NYT: US drones fly "deep" into Mexico to fight drug gangs

Mar 16, 2011, 16:14 GMT

New York - The United States has been sending high- altitude, unarmed drones into Mexico since last month, the New York Times reported Wednesday citing unnamed American military officials and Mexican officials.

The report said the move was part of the increased US role in Mexico's drug wars and that the drones are being sent deep into Mexican territory to help locatE drug traffickers and their networks.

Information gleaned from the missions is to be passed on to Mexican officials.

The deployment of drones follows an agreement between Presidents Barack Obama of the United States and Felipe Calderon of Mexico to continue the surveillance flights when they met in Washington earlier this month, the Times reported.

There was no public announcement of the agreement.

Mexico, particularly its northern regions, has experienced a surge in violence linked to organized crime in recent years, with more than 15,000 people killed in 2010 alone.

For years, Mexico complained that the United States - the main market for drugs moving through Mexico - was not doing enough to help fight the drug gangs but instead was fuelling the wars with high demand for illicit drugs and ready supplies of weapons travelling south of the border in exchange..

Under Obama, however, cooperation has been visibly stepped up, with high US government officials acknowledging the need to get more directly involved in anti-narcotics efforts, most notably by curbing the flow of funds and firearms that fuel crime south of the border.

The United States has trained thousands of Mexican troops and police officers and supplied equipment to Mexico's security forces. However, it had so far stopped short of sending its own personnel on missions into Mexico, for legal reasons as well as nationalistic concerns.

Read more about Mexico Crime

Read more about US