Mexico says US drone flights part of years-old collaboration

Mexico's president said Wednesday that US drone flights were part of a collaboration that has existed for years between the two countries, after US media reported increased cross-border aerial surveillance of drug cartels.

According to The New York Times, Washington has stepped up secret drone flights over Mexico in search of fentanyl labs as part of US President Donald Trump's campaign against drug cartels.

The CIA has not been authorized to use the drones to take lethal action and any information collected is passed to Mexican officials, the Times said, adding that the covert program began under Trump's predecessor Joe Biden but had not been previously disclosed. Mexico this month began moving more troops to its northern border to tackle drug smuggling and illegal migration under an agreement that saw Trump pause tariffs on Mexican goods.