Link to article: https://apnews.com/article/customs-agents-shooting-puerto-rico-55811816baaeae6445ae09a9c56040e3
On Thursday November 17th, two were killed and two were injured during an exchange of gunfire between a potential smuggling boat and a US boat performing a routine patrol run. Those who lost their lives were a CBP (Customs and Border Protection) agent and a suspected smuggler, and those who were injured in the shootout were two other US agents. The incident occurred off the coast of Puerto Rico in a route known as the Mona Passage, which is notorious for drug smuggling. CBP agents also intercepted another boat containing contraband items and firearms following the shootout, and arrested the two men on board. Although the identity and intent of those on both vessels was not immediately clear and has not yet been released to the public, the FBI is investigating the shooting and those involved.
Due to the frequency of drug cartels recruiting fishermen to transport contraband materials in routes through the Caribbean and the route that the potential smugglers were traveling, it is likely that the boat manned by the people who attacked the CBP agents were hired to carry illegal materials. However, the details of this incident have not yet been released and it is still unclear why the people on the boat opened fire or if they were transporting illegal items. Obviously this issue is reflective of the nature of some of the encounters in the Caribbean regarding drugs and border conflict issues, however it seems that the situation might have been isolated, as it escalated quickly and became very violent very quickly.
This situation between United States Customs and Border Patrol agents and potential drug smugglers in the Caribbean reflects the themes of power, state and non-state actors, and the idea of a global police, all of which we have discussed in class. The power in this scenario lies in the hands of the US and drug cartels in South America. Drug cartels essentially have a monopoly over elements of the government, economy, and culture in South America, so the power that drug lords hold to make people do their bidding is quite formidable. That being said, the US has much more power on the global scale, as they act as a sort of world police. The US has the power to stop the behaviors it doesn’t smile upon and encourage the behaviors it does because it is pretty much the lone power at this point. Therefore, it can dictate whether or not South American drug cartels have leverage outside their own country, and although this situation is more of an isolated incident, it reflects the dynamic between the two actors involved.