As reports surfaced that President Donald Trump has issued a directive to the Pentagon to target Latin American drug cartels, it is instructive to note the frightening capabilities of weaponry these criminal groups are reported to employ in order to intimidate governments and possibly threaten Americans.

The incalculable damage done to the American populace from the drugs transported across the border has been evident for years. “The Border Patrol and Office of Field Operations seized a total of 541,000 pounds of illicit drug substances along the southern border, both at and between POEs (points of entry) in Fiscal Year 2023, “ the National Immigration Forum reported.

RELATED: Trump Greenlights Military Force To Take Down Latin American Drug Cartels

On August 1, the Department of Justice announced that six men had been sentenced to federal prison terms for their roles in purchasing high-caliber firearms in the United States for resale to Mexican drug cartels. “The trafficked firearms included high-caliber, armor-piercing, and anti-material weapons. For example, approximately 11 of the firearms trafficked by this organization included Barrett .50 caliber rifles, which can expel a very accurate, heavy, and fast-moving projectile that defeats all individually worn body armor, can penetrate and disable vehicles, aircraft, boats, and can even defeat some types of protection provided by armored vehicles,” the DOJ noted. “The organization also trafficked approximately 16 FN M249S rifles, which are sold in the United States as a semi-automatic weapon but are easily converted into a machine gun.”

The cartels reportedly possess FGM 148 Javelin infrared-guided missile launchers. “Javelin automatically guides itself to the target after launch, allowing the gunner to take cover and avoid counterfire. Soldiers or Marines can reposition immediately after firing, or reload to engage another threat,”  Lockheed Martin explains.

“Steven Willoughby, deputy director of the Department of Homeland Security’s counter-drone program, this week told a Senate panel that more than 300 Mexican drones typically come within 500 meters of the U.S. border each day,” NewsNation reported in late July.

In 2023, The Pacific Council Magazine reported:

The flood of .50-caliber rifles and assault weapons from the U.S. has enabled drug cartels to outgun Mexico’s security forces and expand their influence and activities. That is because these weapons have characteristics and capabilities that make them particularly lethal:  The bullets fired by .50-caliber rifles are powerful enough to punch through concrete walls, bulletproof vests, and armored vehicles such as tanks. In 2016, cartel members used a .50-caliber rifle to down a Mexican state police helicopter, killing the pilot and four others. 

There have been reports as far back as 2015 that say the cartels have used rocket-powered grenades.