Mexico has opened an investigation into the possible participation of members of Mexican drug cartels in the war in Ukraine, President Claudia Sheinbaum said. The inquiry followed a video circulating on social media in which armed men serving with the Ukrainian army appear to mention La Chapiza, a faction of the Sinaloa cartel, and the Jalisco cartel. Sheinbaum said the government would seek to determine how Mexicans who may belong to a criminal group became involved in the conflict, including whether they were recruited by a private company, an army or a government.

Several research platforms had previously reported alleged recruitment of cartel members into Ukraine’s International Legion, but the video has not established their identities or affiliations. The reported interest in Ukraine is linked to the use of first-person-view drones and fiber-optic-controlled drones, which are also increasingly used by criminal groups in Mexico. Ukraine has not responded to reports of Mexicans fighting on its side. Russia’s intelligence service has claimed that at least 80 Mexicans with combat experience have been identified in the Ukrainian armed forces, but that claim has not been independently established.