DISINFO: Ukraine is selling US weapons to drug cartels along the US border
SUMMARY
Weapons previously supplied to Kyiv are now available for purchase online, even by Mexican cartels, while U.S. special services profit from schemes reselling these arms to criminal organisations.
RESPONSE
This claim is part of a broader pro-Kremlin disinformation campaign designed to undermine military support for Ukraine. It emerges within the context of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, serving to discredit international assistance to Kyiv.
No evidence has been presented to support claims of a state-organised or widespread black-market trade of Western weapons. Russian and pro-Russian media, along with officials, have repeatedly alleged that such trafficking is occurring, yet without substantiating their claims. Multiple journalists have investigated these assertions but have found no indication of large-scale operations of this nature.
According to experts on illegal arms trade, the baseless claim that weapons from Ukraine are being trafficked to Mexican cartels is highly unlikely. They argue that the logistics would be too costly and impractical, significantly increasing prices. Moreover, Mexican criminal groups primarily rely on small firearms, making such trafficking unnecessary. Experts also note that arms trafficking is generally regional, meaning any illicit trade from Ukraine would first appear in neighbouring countries.
Furthermore, multiple Western governments have implemented oversight mechanisms to regulate arms transfers. While some weapons have been reported as unaccounted for, these safeguards ensure that large-scale diversion is not possible. Additionally, the Ukrainian authorities actively monitor the process to prevent misuse, as any such incidents could jeopardise future aid.
Read similar cases claiming that the Kyiv regime resells some of the Western weapons to profit from the conflict, that Ukraine sells weapons to the Middle East, that Western weapons for Kyiv go to Islamic terrorists and drug cartels or that escalation in Syria has a Ukrainian trace.