In the first initiative of this kind, Europol and the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) have issued this joint strategic product with the aim of expanding the intelligence picture on the involvement of Mexican criminal actors in the European Union (EU) drug market.

This report delves into the activities of these criminals and their methods. Drug trafficking operations benefit from a number of different actors, such as brokers, cooks, envoys, intermediaries, and money laundering service providers. Examples of the methods used by the criminals include the corruption of officials in the public and private sectors and the exploitation of legal business structures. The report also provides an outlook on potential drug threats that may develop in the future.

 Mexican criminal actors and both US and EU-based criminal networks have been working together to traffic methamphetamine and cocaine from Latin America to the EU. DEA is committed to the relentless pursuit of foreign-based cartels and individuals operating around the world responsible for the drug-poisoning deaths of 107,622 Americans last year.