NEW: Drug cartels are rapidly advancing their drone capabilities — and U.S. officials are now concerned they could be learning from the battlefield. There are reports cartel affiliates are being sent to the Russia-Ukraine war to gain battlefield experience — potentially bringing those skills back to Mexico. A @StateDept spokesperson saying, “The Department of State takes seriously reports of transnational criminal organizations’ growing use of drone technology and tracks the issue closely… The Department of State engages U.S. law enforcement and Ukrainian counterparts to adopt measures to mitigate the risk of battlefield skills transfer and apply lessons from Ukrainian counter-UAS experience to counter the cartel drone threat.” In a statement, @CBP telling @NewsNation, “In fiscal year 2025, CBP detected over 42,000 near-border, unmanned drone flights. This fiscal year, detections have exceeded that number… Cartels use drones to conduct surveillance on U.S. law enforcement, to move illegal narcotics across the border into the United States, and to guide illegal aliens across the border. Inside Mexico, cartels use weaponized drones against rival cartels, law enforcement, and military personnel to evade arrest and capture. They continue to advance their drone technology and tactics, to conceal their movements and operations. President Trump’s executive orders and overall focus on cartels and air dominance has empowered CBP to combat and mitigate cartels’ use of drones. Additional technology resources have benefited border security operations.  CBP continues to deploy multi-sensor capabilities on the border to increase detection and mitigation effectiveness.” H/t @Jackie_Koppell