CIUDAD JUÁREZ (EFE).— Mexico and the United States they launched a new joint initiative to stop arms trafficking into Mexican territory, in an attempt to attack one of the main sources of violence in the country: andl illegal entry of weapons from the north to the south, something that EFE was able to verify yesterday Monday in Juarez City.
The plan includes bilateral operations and stricter controls at international crossings, such as the one recently installed in the Córdova-Americas Bridgeone of the busiest on the border and which connects Ciudad Juarez with the American El Paso, where elements of Mexican army They search vehicles for weapons and ammunition.
Las Mexican authorities They highlighted that the objective is “to safeguard national security on both sides of the border.”
The urgency of the agreement was evident after the murder of Héctor René Rocha González, lawyer and former employee of the municipality of Juárez, which occurred on the 16th in that city.
Rocha was chased by hitmen while driving his car and died while trying to escape running; the attackers shot him with a bullet.AK-47 assault rifle, a weapon that, according to authorities, was smuggled from USA.
For the teacher Ricardo Melgoza Ramosof the Autonomous University of Ciudad Juárez, The agreement opens a window of opportunity after failed experiences in the past.
“There was already talk of an arms trafficking agreement, we will remember the failed process of ‘Fast and Furious’‘. However, we believe that this new attempt can be positive,” Melgoza said about the arms tracking initiative agreed upon between Washington and Mexico City between 2006 and 2011.
“We must remember that 200,000 firearms cross United States to Mexico: 43% from Texas, 22% from Arizona and 9% from California. Now the E-Trace platform will be able to be used to quickly detect the origin of the weapon. If this comes to fruition, the flow of weapons will be reduced and criminal groups will be strangled with the financial part,” he said.
Likewise, Melgoza added that the change in security policy under the Sheinbaum government represents a break with the motto of “hugs, not bullets.”