N-NC QUICK RESPONSE March 13 2015 CONTENTS b 5 MEXICAN MILITARY AND HUMAN RIGHTS - b 5 Quick Responses are intended to provide N-NC senior leaders with background and talking points to ensure consistency in messaging on issues in the public domain N-NC is not the lead for all issues herein so these points should be used with caution especially in public engagements As always leaders are advised to stay in their lane discussing only those issues that are under their purview N-NC PA 719 554-6889 • • • • • Q • • 2 • • Q • Source Coord NB A 0 - 09 MAR 3 • Q • • • • • Q • 4 Q • Source Coord FP PAG J34 _ FBI- DHS Call A O - 11 MAR 15 5 MEXICAN MILITARY AND HUMAN RIGHTS Background A UN report released this week said torture and extrajudicial killings are widespread in Mexico while protests against SEDENA continue as some suggest its involvement in the Guerrero killings Press and the public often question our mil-to-mil relationship with Mexico often arguing that they do not comport with our support of human rights PA posture is RTQ Q Do you believe the Mexican Army was involved in the Tlatlaya case in which 22 people were killed during an armed confrontation A We are well aware of the case and know that the Mexican government is taking it seriously A Mexican federal investigation concluded that eight Army members were involved in the firefight They were subsequently brought before a military court for crimes against military discipline disobedience and violation of official duties Of those eight soldiers Mexico’s Attorney General’s Office charged three of them with homicide They are currently in a military jail awaiting trial None of these individuals had trained by the U S military Q Do you believe the Mexican Army involved in the Iguala case in which 43 student teachers were assaulted kidnapped and allegedly killed by members of a criminal organization A According to the results of the investigation by Mexico’s Attorney General’s Office the Mexican Army was not involved in the assault kidnapping and the alleged killings of the 43 student teachers Due to established protocols the Mexican Army will only respond to civil disturbances when there is a request for support from civil authorities According to the Mexican Army they did not receive a request for support from civil authorities when the armed confrontation took place Q Given the allegations against the Mexican military shouldn’t we suspend military-tomilitary ties with Mexico A No Mexico is a key partner in the continental defense of North America We share a common border with Mexico which requires us to have a close partnership We need to continue to collaboratively cooperate with our Mexican military partners so that both countries' militaries build and reach an effective level of security capacity in order to better secure the North American hemisphere The Mexican military wants to be a full-fledged participant in the collective defense and security of North America They want to buy like-equipment so we can work together in reaching this common goal Our capacity building with the Mexican military strengthens their internal security which as a collateral effect strengthens our security The Mexican military is the most trusted security institution in Mexico and will be an essential contributor to the collective defense and security of North America It is also the number one responder to natural disasters and humanitarian relief in Mexico Q Is mil-to-mil with Mexico working 6 A Yes the relationship is the most productive it has been in decades The Mexican military is currently looking to us to be partner of choice as evidenced by the $1B Foreign Military Sales budget last year Security Cooperation programs continue to grow annually Our institutions are sharing more and more information in order to address our common threats together The Mexican military looks to build interoperability with us They ask to participate in as many exercises as possible They are slowly shifting focus from only conducting coincidental operations with us to acknowledging that they need to make changes to be able to conduct combined operations The improved relationship was apparent in the request for US military to evacuate US citizens during the hurricane in Los Cabos last year An additional example is the success of the North American Maritime Security Initiative NAMSI - one of the main focal points of security in the region is counter-trafficking NAMSI has enhanced the partnership and interoperability of US Canada and Mexico to counter all means of trafficking in the maritime domain near our borders Q What good has come from our military-to-military relationship with Mexico A The military-to-military relationship between the United States and Mexico has advanced to unprecedented levels of coordination Today Mexico and the United States are strategic partners respecting the laws and sovereignty of our individual nations and at the same time facing shared challenges in an effort to reach a common goal of defense and security of the North American continent Through a series of engagements and sharing of information there is now a tendency among the Mexican military to work jointly not only among the services but among the other federal agencies within the GoM The sharing of information has played a role in the GoM’s apprehension or take-down of 91 high value targets out of 122 which has resulted in ending the impunity throughout the region We have become the military partner of choice not only in acquisition of equipment but in time of a crisis as evidenced when USNORTHCOM supported a GoM request to evacuate American citizens from Los Cabos Mexico after Hurricane Odile devastated the area Through a series of exercises we are supporting the Mexican military in their efforts to become a global actor We collaborate with the Mexican military in their efforts to reform their military judicial system and create a more transparent human rights accountability process Finally the levels of trust and goodwill have reached the highest levels as reflected by President Enrique Pena Nieto’s recognition of the Northcom commander during a disaster response conference for USNORTHCOM’s support towards Mexico’s disaster response preparedness In addition the Mexican Secretaries of National Defense and the Navy recognized the Northcom commander for his efforts to strengthen military ties between the United States and Mexico - Source Coord N-NC J59 b - - 6 USEMBMX PA b 6 A O b 6 11 MAR 2015 7 NBC press gu'd 1 an ce - • • • • Q 8 Messages • • • • Q • Q • 9 • • Q • Q • • Source Coord N-NC Historian - A 0 - 10 MAR 2015 10 Messages • • • Q Q Q 11 • Source Sources Sought CRB 15-0005 FA25 17-15-R-9022 A Os - J7 12 • • • • Source Coord USSS - NB- A 0 - 10 MAR 13 14 OSD release • • • • 15