A Threat to Regional Stability

Posted: February 24th, 2016

By Michael Vigil

Mike Vigil is the former Chief of International Operations for the Drug Enforcement Administration. He is one of the most highly decorated agents within the agency and was responsible for numerous multi-national operations, the largest involved 36 countries. He was also responsible for developing global intelligence sharing platforms. He is the author of DEAL and Metal Coffins: The Blood Alliance Cartel and Narco Queen. He is also the author of The Land of Enchantment Cartel. Vigil was made an honorary General by the government of Afghanistan and given the key to the city of Shanghai by China. He was also given an Admiral’s sword by the former president of the Dominican Republic, Hipolito Mejia.

The problems plaguing the Northern Triangle—Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador—are plenty, but for retired DEA Agent Michael Vigil one stands out among the rest. “Drug trafficking is synonymous with violence and the Northern Triangle is not exempt to this rule,” he explained. Even more problematic, the resulting violence is not isolated to these three countries. Michael Vigil assesses how instability in the Northern Triangle impacts neighboring countries and how the U.S., whose large drug consumption is partly to blame for the booming drug trafficking industry, can help address these pressing concerns to bring greater regional stability.

The Cipher Brief: How would you assess the violence from the Northern Triangle countries? Is the security situation there improving or worsening?

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