Joint Initiatives or Joint Dysfunction? The US-Mexico “Drug War”

Vollant, Ethan

Joint Initiatives or Joint Dysfunction? The US-Mexico “Drug War”

Persistent URL

https://hdl.handle.net/10456/59120

Author(s)

Vollant, Ethan

Date Issued

April 14, 2025

Abstract

This paper examines joint U.S.-Mexico drug policy evolution from 2006 to 2024, focusing on the Mérida Initiative and the U.S.-Mexico Bicentennial Framework for Security, Public Health, and Safe Communities. It analyzes how internal and external actors, including political elites, international organizations, regional pressures, and drug cartels, shape drug policy between the two countries. The study employs a qualitative analysis using government policies and documents, secondary literature, and a historical analysis to assess how formal and informal actors have influenced the policymaking process. Key hypotheses test the importance of government structure, elite interests, and U.S. involvement in sustaining militarized approaches to drug enforcement. The research finds that despite leadership and political parties, militarization and corruption have persisted, elite interests and international pressures have often driven policies. Ultimately, this project contributes to broader discussions on joint policy production in transnational security issues and highlights the challenges of human rights accountability and sovereignty in joint drug policy.

Major

Political Science

First Reader(s)

Mattiace, Shannan