Mexico Is Buying Some of America's Most Powerful Weapons (But Why?)

Mexico is on the verge of being a failed state, swept by violence from powerful drug cartels who have turned the nation's cities and villages into bloody battlegrounds. Earlier this month, the U.S. State Department approved a $98.4 million weapons sale to Mexico, including RGM-84L Harpoon Block II anti-ship missiles, Rolling Airframe Missile (RAM) systems designed to shoot down antiship missiles and Mark 54 antisubmarine torpedoes. The high-tech weaponry is intended for the Mexican Navy's new Sigma 10514–class long-range patrol ships.