Thread: Chechnya Threatens to Arm Mexico if U.S. Sends Weapons to Ukraine

Chechnya Threatens to Arm Mexico if U.S. Sends Weapons to Ukraine

BY HAYLEY RICHARDSON
3/26/15 AT 1:10 PM

FILED UNDER: World, Chechnya, U.S., Ukraine, Russia

The Chechen parliament have threatened to send weapons to Mexico in retaliation to the U.S. Congress calling for defensive lethal aid to be sent to Ukraine.

On Tuesday, the U.S. House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly in favour of sending arms - the resolution was passed 348 to 48.
U.S. senator for Wisconsin Ron Johnson branded it “absolutely necessary” that president Obama provide lethal and nonlethal military assistance to Ukraine, in light of the attacks by Russian-backed rebels on civilians in Mariupol in January.

In response, Chechnya's parliamentary speaker Dukuvakha Abdurakhmanovsaid that the U.S. has “no right” to advise Russia on how to behave with its neighbours.

He warned that the supply of arms to Ukraine will be perceived by Chechnya, a southern Russian republic, as a signal to deliver new weapons to Mexico to “resume debate on the legal status of the territories annexed by the U.S.”

Abdurakhmanov is referring to the states of California, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, Colorado and Wyoming, which Mexico surrendered to the U.S. in the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848, a peace deal which concluded the Mexican-American conflict.

The U.S. paid Mexico $15 million and took on the $3.25 million debt owed by the Mexican government to American citizens in exchange for the territory.

In the 1853 Gadsden Purchase, the U.S. paid an additional $10 million to buy what is now New Mexico and Arizona.

Adurakhmanov said: “We reserve the right to conduct conferences in Russia, Mexico and the U.S. to raise the question of breaking away the above mentioned states from the U.S. and supplying weapons to resistance fighters there.”

On Tuesday, the head of the foreign affairs committee in the State Duma, the lower house of the Russian parliament, Alexey Pushkov, urged Obama to resist congressional pressure to arm Ukraine.

Pushkov told a Russian news agency that the U.S. Congress’ non-binding resolution sends “a strong signal of America’s long-term support in its policy of confrontation with Russia”.

Previous calls to arm Ukraine have been rejected by the Obama administration, who fear the move could instigate greater bloodshed between Ukrainian forces and the separatists.

Earlier this month, the death toll from the conflict in eastern Ukraine passed 6,000, according the UN human rights office.
The crisis erupted in April 2014 following the annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation during the previous month.

http://www.newsweek.com/chechnya-thr...ukraine-316959

Mexico Is Arming Itself With U.S. Military Hardware

But America’s southern neighbor once preferred European weapons — what changed?

by ROBERT BECKHUSEN

In recent years, Mexico has made a major shift in how it equips its military. Instead of largely relying on European nations to sell it weapons — as was the case for decades — Mexico is increasingly turning to the United States.

Because there’s a drug war going on … which the U.S. is eager to help bankroll.

It’s not just money, of which the U.S. has provided $2.5 billion since 2008. The U.S. continues to supply Mexico with battle rifles, Humvees, helicopters and gobs of night vision gear. It all comes during an internal conflict that’s killed tens of thousands of people and is still extremely violent.

The country’s largest drug cartels have fragmented. Some cities — such as the border town of Ciudad Juarez — are considerably safer than a few years ago.

However, rural areas continue to deteriorate, with smaller and more decentralized drug gangs kidnapping, extorting and killing with impunity.

[IMG]https://d262ilb51hltx0.cloudfront.net/max/1000/1*LV1zeQzi1NbITpoqAz5s3Q.png[/IMG]

But Mexico had been wary of buying weapons from the United States.

There’s a series of long and complicated reasons for this. There’s the history of U.S. interventions in Mexican territory, and the reality of domestic Mexican politics. During the Cold War, Mexican politicians were afraid of building too close of a relationship with the U.S. — a hedge against the Soviet Union stirring up trouble in its backyard.

Mexico was never part of NATO, and the country scuttled a proposed U.S. military agreement in 1952 because it came with the condition that Mexican troops help out in “missions important to the defense of the Western Hemisphere.”

At the time, the U.S. wanted Mexico to contribute troops to the war in Korea. But Mexico City saw this conflict as too far removed, and hardly a threat to its own interests.

Mexico preferred to keep its army small — owing to a history of military dictators overthrowing elected governments in the 19th and early 20th centuries. The U.S. offering to help expand the Mexican army in the 1950s? Thanks, but no thanks.

It shows in Mexico’s arsenal. The Mexican navy — in actuality a coastal defense force — is heavily comprised of former U.S. Navy ships donated or sold in the 1980s and 1990s.

But the Mexicans’ armored fighting vehicles are French. Many of their rifles are German. Their artillery is French, Chinese and Italian. On the other hand, there’s plenty of American weapons now, too.


[IMG]https://d262ilb51hltx0.cloudfront.net/max/2000/1*wsaOekGiGql3-sNbjlw_hg.jpeg[/IMG]
Above — Mexican troops escort Zetas regional boss Luis “Z-44” Jesus Sarabia on Jan. 13, 2012. Christian Palma/AP photo. At top — Mexican army troops at a checkpoint in Culiacan on Jan. 29, 2012. Marco Ugarte/AP photo

Rifles

The Mexican army largely uses German G3 and HK33 battle rifles, and a smaller number domestically produced FX-05 Xiuhcoatl rifles — which are variants of the German G36.

But Washington has transferred thousands of rifles to the Mexican army during the past decade. These are largely AR-15 variant carbines. You can see a Mexican soldier equipped with one above, while escorting a Zetas cartel regional boss in 2012.

In 2014, the price of U.S. small arms and ammunition exports to the Mexico came to $21.6 million, according to researcher John Lindsay-Poland, writing for the North American Congress on Latin America’s Website.

That’s not very much — but Mexico and the U.S. are spending billions of dollars on other kinds of hardware, either through direct purchases or via military aid.

NACLA has also helpfully published a chart showing the increase in American arms sales to Mexico, depicting it hitting a $1.2 billion peak in 2012.


[IMG]https://d262ilb51hltx0.cloudfront.net/max/2000/1*x_T4Q02PHXKYFyJL_L3ERw.jpeg[/IMG]
A Mexican federal police Black Hawk helicopter waiting to transport Sinaloa Cartel boss Joaquin Guzman on Feb. 22, 2014. Marco Ugarte/AP photo

Helicopters and Humvees

One of the most expensive and visible elements of U.S. aid is in the form of Black Hawk helicopters.

Mexico first bought Black Hawks in 1991 — but only two of them.

Later, the Mexican federal police acquired 23 of the military ’choppers.

Since the drug war accelerated in the late 2000s, the U.S. began exporting a lot more. In 2014, the Pentagon paid Sikorsky more than $680 million for 18 Black Hawks — plus their equipment and support services — for transfer to the Mexican air force.

The deal includes two M134 miniguns for each helicopter. Plus night vision gear for the Mexican pilots and navigation equipment.

“The sale of these UH-60M helicopters to Mexico will significantly increase and strengthen its capability to provide in-country airlift support for its forces engaged in counter-drug operations,” the U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency stated in a notification to Congress.

The U.S. sold three more Black Hawks to the Mexican marines in 2015. The marines have previously put these helicopters to good use, such as swooping down and arresting cartel leaders — including Sinaloa Cartel boss Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman in 2014.

But that’s not all. The U.S. sold the Mexican air force 15 Bell 407GX helicopters this year, according to NACLA.

Then there’s the build-up on the ground. In January, the U.S. confirmed a sale of 2,200 Humvees to the Mexican army in a deal worth $245 million. The DSCA announced the deal last year, but trimmed it down by several hundred vehicles.

For 2015, it is one of the largest U.S. military arms sales abroad.

Buy ‘Murder City: Ciudad Juarez and the Global Economy's New Killing Fields.’
“Mexico has been a strong partner in combating organized crime and drug trafficking organizations,” the DSCA stated. “The sale of these HMMWVs to Mexico will significantly increase and strengthen its capability to provide in-country troop mobility to provide security.”

Which also makes the U.S. one of Mexico’s largest arms suppliers. It’s quite a change from the more skeptical — if friendly — days of the Cold War.

https://medium.com/war-is-boring/mex...e-a57c91b8283a

Originally Posted by JohnDoe2

One of the most expensive and visible elements of U.S. aid is in the form of Black Hawk helicopters. Since the drug war accelerated in the late 2000s, the U.S. began exporting a lot more. In 2014, the Pentagon paid Sikorsky more than $680 million for 18 Black Hawks — plus their equipment and support services — for transfer to the Mexican air force.

The War on Drugs is a delusion. We tried Prohibition here at home. The result was rival drug gangs and massive corruption. We tried interdiction in Columbia. The result was rival drug gangs - some of which became militias - and massive corruption. We're trying interdiction now in Mexico. The result is rival drug gangs - plus private security for the wealthy - and massive corruption. When will we learn?

News flash: Demand creates supply.

The only drug policy which will actually work long term is legalization, regulation, taxation, and education. That's how we handle alcohol. This is not a perfect solution, but it's better than the delusional alternatives.
******************************
Americans first in this magnificent country

American jobs for American workers

Fair trade, not free trade

There are ways to stop repeat offenders.

Mar. 11, 2015 | 08:05 PM

Saudi Arabia beheads 3 for drug trafficking



Agence France Presse

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia on Wednesday beheaded three people convicted of smuggling narcotics into the ultra-conservative kingdom, where executions have accelerated this year, the interior ministry said.

Amnesty International warned that the kingdom was "well on track" to surpass its previous annual execution record, on the back of this "unprecedented spike" in killings.

Hammud Hajuri from Yemen and Mohammed al-Qahtani, a Saudi, were executed in southwestern Jizan province after being found guilty of trafficking amphetamines and hashish, the foreign ministry said in a statement carried by the SPA state news agency.

It said a Syrian, Fadi Abdulrazzaq, was executed in the northern province of Jawf after having been convicted of smuggling amphetamines.

The latest beheadings bring to 43 the number since the start of 2015, according to an AFP tally.

"This unprecedented spike in executions constitutes a chilling race to the bottom for a country that is already among the most prolific executioners on the planet," said Said Boumedouha, deputy regional director at Amnesty International.

The "alarming execution rate" puts the kingdom "out of step with the vast majority of countries around the world that have now rejected the death penalty in law or practice," he added.

The London-based rights group said that around half of the executions this year were for drug-related offences, charging that this contradicts Saudi claims that the death penalty is imposed for only the most serious crimes.

Rape, murder, apostasy, armed robbery and drug trafficking are all punishable by death under Saudi Arabia's version of Islamic sharia law.

The Gulf state has carried out around 80 executions annually since 2011, with 87 last year by AFP's tally.

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Mid...afficking.ashx

Vietnam sentences 30 heroin smugglers to death including NINE females

• A total of 89 defendants convicted of smuggling heroin from 2006 to 2012
• Each was flanked by two police officers at special court in detention centre
• A further 59 defendants were handed sentences ranging up to life in prison
• Part of four rings which trafficked drugs from Laos into Vietnam and China
  

By SIMON TOMLINSON
PUBLISHED: 07:57 EST, 20 January 2014 | UPDATED: 13:58 EST, 20 January 2014

Thirty drug smugglers have been sentenced to death in Vietnam for trafficking more than 12 tons of heroin in the communist country's largest-ever narcotics case.

The 21 men and nine women, all Vietnamese, were found guilty of drug trafficking, while a further 59 defendants were handed sentences ranging up to life in prison.

Each appeared flanked by two police officers at the mass trial in Quang Ninh province, which was held in the yard of a detention centre, rather than a courtroom.

'This was Vietnam's largest ever trial in terms of defendants, the number of death penalties given out and the amount of heroin involved,' presiding judge Ngo Duc said after the verdict was read out in the northern province of Quang Ninh - which borders China.


Justice en masse: Some 89 defendants are each flanked by two police officers as they are sentenced for heroin smuggling after Vietnam's biggest-ever drugs trial

'Because of the large number of defendants and the seriousness of the case, the trial was held at the prison,' Mr Duc added after the 17-day trial.

Investigators said the defendants belonged to four international smuggling rings responsible for trafficking heroin and other drugs from neighbouring Laos into Vietnam and China since 2006.

'All the defendants are Vietnamese and most of them came from Vietnam's northwestern provinces,' court clerk Nguyen Trung Hieu told AFP.

Vietnam's remote northwestern region, which borders both China and Laos, is poor and populated by a patchwork of ethnic minority groups.

There have been previous smuggling cases in the area, which is far from the control of Hanoi.

According to a list of the defendants' names seen by AFP, some of the 89 people were from ethnic minority groups but court officials could not confirm their status.


Facing lethal injection: Judges condemned 30 people to death for their part in trafficking the 12-ton haul

One of the leaders of the four smuggling rings broken up by the police remains at large, state media reported.

Police disrupted the rings in August 2013, making mass arrests and seizing large quantities of illegal drugs.

They also confiscated 20 luxury cars and dozens of guns and other weapons during the raid, state media reported.

Communist Vietnam has some of the world's toughest anti-drug laws.

Anyone found guilty of possessing more than 600 grams (21 ounces) of heroin, or more than 20 kilograms of opium, can face the death penalty.

Convictions and sentences are usually revealed only by local media, which is strictly under state control.


Thirteen received life in jail and 46 were given either prison terms of up to 20 years, or warnings, the government said in a statement on its Internet site

The 'Golden Triangle' region covering part of Laos, Thailand and Myanmar was formerly one of the world's top producers of opium and heroin but has been overtaken by Afghanistan.

After a two-year hiatus in carrying out capital punishment due to problems procuring chemicals for lethal injections, Vietnam executed its first prisoner by the method last August.

The country currently now has more than 700 prisoners on death row, according to media reports and an AFP tally.

Many have been sentenced for drug offences including dozens of foreigners - although it has been decades since a foreign citizen was executed.

Although Vietnam does not release statistics on executions, rights group Amnesty International recorded 86 new death sentences in 2012 while it said five executions were carried out the previous year.

Amnesty said it was 'dismayed' to learn about the sentences, which come on top of recent death sentences handed out in high-profile corruption and embezzlement cases.

'Amnesty International opposes the death penalty in all cases, without exception,' Rupert Abbott, its researcher on Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam, told AFP.

'Rather than continuing to hand down death sentences, the Vietnamese authorities should be moving towards abolition, in line with the global trend,' he added.

Due to problems with both procuring and producing domestically the chemicals required for lethal injections, some lawmakers have called for a return to executions by firing squad.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...#ixzz3WBb6wQYz

http://www.alipac.us/f9/mexican-mili...-binge-318630/