Victory or smoke screen?
The US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) is not giving up. He has just published a thread in X celebrating with great fanfare an operation in Colima. The loot: 270 kilos of fentanyl and the arrest of a certain Yair “N”. Sounds like a masterstroke, right?
“Today’s seizure demonstrates the power of international cooperation against the foreign terrorist organization CJNG,” the agency tweeted.
There is the magic word: cooperation. The DEA is quick to take credit for sharing “critical information” with its Mexican “partners.” They even congratulated the government. All very cordial, very diplomatic. Too much, perhaps.
Memory is shorter than a tweet
But one can’t help but remember. Not so long ago, relationships on this issue were tighter than a guitar string. Crossed accusations, institutional distrust… and now this. A virtual hug on social networks.
The official statement talks about “saving millions of lives” and dealing a “blow” to the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG). The figures are impressive: 270 kilos are equivalent to about 14 million doses, according to the authorities. Seven people arrested in Villa de Álvarez.
However, the question that no official tweet answers is obvious: does this really alter the flow? Fentanyl is cheap, easy to produce and deadly effective. Dismantle one laboratory today, three emerge tomorrow.
The DEA and the Department of Justice paint a picture of impeccable collaboration. Omar García Harfuch, Mexican Secretary of Citizen Security, appears as the local hero of the gringo story. It’s a neat narrative, conveniently packaged for public consumption.
But in this game, releases are just one part of the board. What is not said sometimes outweighs what is proclaimed to the four winds. Today they celebrate together. We’ll have to see how long the honeymoon lasts this time.
