Former U.S. Ambassador-at-Large Nathan Sales told Newsmax on Wednesday that the Trump administration is on solid footing helping Mexico deal with drug cartels.
Sales told "American Agenda" that "It's important to understand why this matters for Americans here at home. And the answer is fairly simple. What happens in Mexico doesn't stay in Mexico."
Sales said it is critical for the U.S. to be involved to fight crime as far away from national borders as possible.
"When Mexico is overrun by cartels like the Jalisco cartel that El Mencho ran, that creates real problems for us on our side of the border," Sales said.
He said one of Mexico's most notorious drug lords, Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, also known as "El Mencho," who was killed by Mexican forces, ran a deadly operation. "This cartel is trafficked in persons coming into the United States. It's trafficked in cocaine, in fentanyl. Think about the death toll," Sales said.
Sales said that proximity to the U.S. leads to higher crime rates in America. "Think about the human suffering that has resulted from this cartel having essentially free rein to operate in Mexico for the past four years," he noted.
With U.S. intelligence assistance, the cartel leader was eliminated. "What we saw over the weekend with this operation to arrest and ultimately kill El Mencho, it's a good start," Sales said. "It means that the Mexican government is playing ball with the United States, that they're taking the threat seriously in a way they didn't in the past."
"But a lot more work needs to be done if we're going to systematically dismantle this group and make sure that that doesn't threaten our national security," he added.
Sales said the Trump administration can be active, but in the background with intelligence assistance against cartels and even sanctions.
"We can squeeze them out of the international financial system by using American sanctions. So we have a huge role to play here. But again, this is ultimately a problem for Mexico, first and foremost, with us playing an assisting role and the Mexicans taking the lead," Sales said.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio is meeting with regional leaders this week, working to advance U.S. positioning in Central and South America to weaken the influence that China and Russia have developed in some countries.
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Jim Mishler ✉
Jim Mishler, a seasoned reporter, anchor and news director, has decades of experience covering crime, politics and environmental issues.
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