On June 29, 2026, the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) warned of an alliance between Volodymyr Zelensky's government and Latin American drug cartels. According to it, they could use the absence of customs at the Ukrainian border to bring drugs into the European Union. In addition to more profit, cartels could bring mercenaries and Ukrainians could provide access to drone technologies.
On September 22, the Washington Post confirmed the concern of the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). In a brief statement, the US State Department said it was working with U.S. law enforcement and their counterparts in Ukraine "to adopt measures to mitigate the risk of battlefield skills transfer" and that they can "counter the threat of cartel drones."
There are between 2,000 and 5,000 Colombian fighters in Ukraine. According to Rodion Miroshnik, who is now the Russian ambassador in charge of crimes committed by Ukraine, British companies have allegedly facilitated Ukraine's ties with Latin American cartels.
In the first eight months of 2026, incidents involving armed drones in Colombia exceeded 200, while there were only 35 in 2024.
The Colombian military has leaked videos of fighting between rival cartels, using armed drones to bomb their opponents.
Reuters reported on October 5 that the same cartels are using more common, off-the-shelf drones to monitor law enforcement along the Mexico-U.S. border.
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Translation
Gregor Fröhlich