Piracy is becoming a major threat in the Gulf of Mexico.

Paramedics treat a victim of piracy. New York Time/EPA.

Piracy is becoming a major threat in the Gulf of Mexico as the US government has issued a new warning against attacks in the Bay of Campeche. New York Times. The attacks are mostly targeting the oil industry with Mexican tankers and oil platforms being targeted. Pirates steal more mundane personal items like phones and money, but have also stripped ships and platforms of more valuable equipment. Piracy has not been a long term issue in the Gulf of Mexico but has picked up dramatically since 2017. Since that year there have been 74 attacks recorded, with actual numbers much higher. In response to the attack Mexico has stepped up patrols in the region.

My Comments:

I always like writing about piracy as it always seems like something from a bygone era. Of course modern pirates are sadly all to common and the Gulf of Mexico is only one of several places where it is a serious problem. Both Somalia and Southeast Asia have major problems with piracy as well. 

This is a fairly serious national security threat for Mexico. They are reliant on their oil industry for much of their economy and these pirates make this a lot more difficult for them. Without the taxes the industry provides the country could collapse. 

I suspect the drug cartels are involved in this. The Times article didn't mention them but given how powerful and ubiquitous the cartels are I can't imagine that they wouldn't be involved. The Cartels have tried to move beyond just drug smuggling and piracy would just be another form of profit for them. 

I don't have a lot of confidence in Mexico's abilities in stopping piracy in the Gulf of Mexico. Though their efforts there have stepped up they have been remarkably incapable in stopping the cartels in any of their other efforts. I don't know why piracy would be any different. 

However, I do think that the international community can help out. Stopping piracy is something that pretty much every country agrees with and an international effort to wipe it out in Somalia was largely successful. If the US Navy and other non-Mexican forces showed up in the Bay of Campeche, I think the piracy would go away pretty quickly. But given the politics of the situation, I don't think that will happen anytime soon.