Introduction
A recent controversy surrounding a US Air Force C-130 Hercules landing at Toluca International Airport has caused unnecessary strain on the officialist discourse regarding security cooperation with the Trump administration.
Confirmation of Frequent US Military Use at Toluca Airport
The controversy has now been confirmed, as previously reported by various media outlets. The US Air Force frequently uses the Toluca airport, not Santa Lucía military base, with full consent from their counterparts.
Refutation of Officialist Explanations
Initial explanations provided by official and legislative figures were debunked with documents. The Senate’s Maritime Commission initially examined the request by the Secretary of Government to allow US military personnel entry onto national territory as part of special forces operations training from January 19 to April 15, 2026.
Senate Permanent Commission’s Role
The request was submitted by the President of the Permanent Commission, Laura Itzel Castillo, on December 18. The document specified that a delegation of 19 Navy SEALs and 10 members from the 7th Special Forces Group of the US Marines would enter with military equipment aboard a C-130 Hercules aircraft.
To validate this report, the Permanent Commission needed to convene the Senate Plenum for an extraordinary session, originally planned for the first working week of 2026. The US intervention in Venezuela reportedly canceled the exchange program where Mexican military officials would receive training at Camp Shelby, Mississippi.
Lack of Senate Influence on Authorization
The leader of the Political Coordination Board in the Senate, Adán Augusto López Hernández, confirmed that a session was called to prepare the report but noted there were no conditions, quorum, and the report was ultimately withdrawn from the Commission’s agenda at the last minute.
The Senate Permanent Commission did not influence the authorization of the C-130 Hercules landing on Saturday, December 17.
National Security Council’s Authorization
The National Security Council, now known, authorized the transfer of 39 members from the Strategic Operations National Unit of the Secretariat of Citizen Security. This elite corps had not been heard of until March of the previous year, despite various press reports; they were already operating de facto and identified themselves with “SSPC Special Operations” uniforms.
On December 1, 2024, the agreement creating an Intelligence Subsecretary within the SSPC was published in the Federal Register, to which the UNO commands would be affiliated, calling themselves “Mexico’s best shield.”
Leaked Documents and Radiogram
The leaked document by priista Manuel Añorve and the radiogram from the Center for National Surveillance and Aerial Space Protection of the State General Staff of the Ministry of Defense in response to journalistic notes by Colonel Keith Wiedner, the military attache at the US embassy in Mexico, shed light on the situation.
During Kenneth Salazar’s tenure as ambassador, there was no military attache. Colonel Wiedner, a Marine Corps graduate, was in San Salvador until mid-last year.
Implications for Mexico-US Security Group Meeting
This controversy presents a troubling precedent for the third meeting of the Mexico-US Security Implementation Group, scheduled in Washington D.C. later this week. The Mexican delegation consistently demands respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, along with mutual trust, shared responsibility (differentiated), and cooperation yielding results without subordination.
