Portrait of Felipe Calderón
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Felipe Calderón on Los Zetas

Aggressively targeted (strong)

TL;DR

Felipe Calderón waged a full-scale military war against Los Zetas and other cartels as a central component of his security strategy.

Key Points

  • The President specifically ordered targeting of the Los Zetas in 2010 amidst their growing violence and separation from the Gulf Cartel.

  • The primary counter-strategy was a military one, deploying tens of thousands of soldiers to combat the DTOs across the country.

  • The administration's approach focused on capturing or killing cartel leaders, including those from Los Zetas, as part of the 'kingpin strategy'.

Summary

Felipe Calderón initiated his "war against organized crime" by aggressively deploying the Mexican military, which included specifically targeting the Los Zetas cartel starting in 2010. His strategy was a four-pronged attack involving military engagement, dismantling cartel leadership structures (the 'kingpin strategy'), reforming domestic law institutions, and soliciting U.S. assistance via initiatives like the Mérida Initiative. The goal was to assert state control and eradicate drug trafficking, which was seen as a primary national security threat that undermined the state's core functions of security and rule of law. Although the administration claimed success in capturing or killing several high-ranking Los Zetas operatives, including their commander, the overall impact was heavily criticized for failing to address underlying state fragility issues.

The strategy's focus on leadership decapitation inadvertently contributed to greater violence as fragmentation occurred among cartels, leading to intensified turf wars, including those involving Los Zetas against their former allies, the Gulf Cartel. The military's pervasive presence and operations against groups like Los Zetas also led to documented human rights violations, further complicating the legitimacy of the security strategy. Ultimately, despite the aggressive targeting of groups like Los Zetas, the drug trade continued to thrive, and violence surged to unprecedented levels during his presidency.

Key Quotes

My government does not negotiate nor will it ever negotiate with criminal organizations, with those that we combat without favoritism [and we] are committed not only to confront them but to defeat them with all the force of the State.

“I do not want to see [Cardona] in any military installation, he is an ugly and disrespectful drunk.”

Frequently Asked Questions

Felipe Calderón's main strategy was an aggressive, militarized 'war against organized crime' that heavily utilized the Mexican Army. This included a 'kingpin strategy' to capture or kill cartel leaders and dismantle their structures, which directly targeted groups like Los Zetas. He viewed the cartels as a direct threat to the state's national security.

Felipe Calderón stated he has no regrets regarding the way he fought the drug war, insisting that violence would have skyrocketed regardless of his federal intervention. He believes his strategy was on the right track for enforcing the rule of law, and his only regret was being unable to complete that mission due to political and time constraints.

Los Zetas were aggressively pursued by the military under Calderón's direction, leading to the capture or death of several of their high-ranking members, including their commander. However, the overall outcome of the war was increased violence and the fragmentation of the cartel, which was a consequence of the strategy.