To support its maritime counternarcotics operations, the Mexican Navy purchased two Knox-class frigates from the U.S. Navy through the FMS program. The two ships, valued at about $7 million, were delivered in 1997. [⁹]

When delivered, however, the ships were inoperable, as they lacked "the equipment needed to ensure the safety of the crew." The General Accounting Office (GAO) explains:

The U.S. Navy estimated that it will cost the Mexican Navy about $400,000 to procure this equipment and that it will be at least 2 years before the ships will be operational. Even though the U.S. Navy knew that the ships would not be operational when they were delivered, DOD [the Department of Defense] began providing the Mexican Navy with about $1.3 million worth of training to 110 personnel related to the two Knox-class frigates. U.S. embassy officials stated that this training will be completed in March 1998. The Mexican Navy will reassign these personnel until the ships can be used. According to DOD officials, they approved the training because they were not informed by the U.S. Navy that the ships would not be operational. [10]

Training costs were covered by Defense Department funds authorized by section 1004 of the 1991 defense authorization law.

(All figures in thousands of U.S. dollars. "**" means less than US500.)

Sources:

¹ United States, Department of State, Department of Defense, Foreign Military Assistance Act Report To Congress, Fiscal Year 1996 (Washington: September 1997).

² United States, Department of Defense, Defense Security Assistance Agency, Defense Articles (Including Excess) and Services (Including Training) Furnished Foreign Countries and International Organizations Under the Foreign Military Sales Provisions of The Arms Export Control Act, Chapter 2 (Washington: August 1998).

³ United States, Department of Defense, Defense Security Cooperation Agency, Defense Articles (Including Excess) and Services (Including Training) Furnished Foreign Countries and International Organizations Under the Foreign Military Sales Provisions of The Arms Export Control Act, Chapter 2 (Washington: July 1999) <http://www.fas.org/asmp/profiles/655/655rep.html>.

⁴ United States, Department of Defense, Defense Security Cooperation Agency, Defense Articles (Including Excess) and Services (Including Training) Furnished Foreign Countries and International Organizations Under the Foreign Military Sales Provisions of The Arms Export Control Act, Chapter 2 (Washington: September 2000) <http://www.fas.org/asmp/profiles/655-99/655rep.html>.

5 United States, Department of Defense, Defense Security Cooperation Agency, Defense Articles (Including Excess) and Services (Including Training) Furnished Foreign Countries and International Organizations Under the Foreign Military Sales Provisions of The Arms Export Control Act, Chapter 2 (Washington: April 2001) <http://www.fas.org/asmp/profiles/655-2000/FMS/2000-fms-full.pdf>.

6 United States, Department of Defense, Defense Security Cooperation Agency, Defense Articles (Including Excess) and Services (Including Training) Furnished Foreign Countries and International Organizations Under the Foreign Military Sales Provisions of The Arms Export Control Act, Chapter 2 (Washington: August 2002) <http://www.fas.org/asmp/profiles/655-2001/FMS/2001-fms-full.pdf>.

7 United States, Department of Defense, Defense Security Cooperation Agency, Defense Articles (Including Excess) and Services (Including Training) Furnished Foreign Countries and International Organizations Under the Foreign Military Sales Provisions of The Arms Export Control Act, Chapter 2 (Washington: March 2003) <http://www.fas.org/asmp/profiles/655-2002/FMS/Entire%20Report.pdf>.

8 United States, Department of Defense, Defense Security Cooperation Agency, Defense Articles (Including Excess) and Services (Including Training) Furnished Foreign Countries and International Organizations Under the Foreign Military Sales Provisions of The Arms Export Control Act, Chapter 2 (Washington: September 2004) <http://www.fas.org/asmp/profiles/655-2003/6552003.html>.

⁹ United States, Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, Department of State, International Narcotics Control Strategy Report, Washington, March 1998, March 2, 1998 <http://www.state.gov/www/global/narcotics_law/1997_narc_report/index.html>.

United States, General Accounting Office, "Drug Control: Status of Counternarcotics Efforts in Mexico," Statement of Benjamin F. Nelson, Director, International Relations and Trade Issues, National Security and International Affairs Division, before the Subcommittee on National Security, International Affairs, and Criminal Justice, Committee on Government Reform and Oversight, House of Representatives; and the Caucus on International Narcotics Control, U.S. Senate, document number GAO/T-NSIAD-98-129, Washington, March 18, 1998: 12 <http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/useftp.cgi?IPaddress=waisback.access.gpo.gov&filename=ns98129t.txt&directory=/diskb/wais/data/gao>.

¹⁰ General Accounting Office 13.