The Senate authorizes the entry of 139 United States military personnel

The Senate of the Republic authorized the entry into national territory of 139 foreign military personnel to participate in the “Joint Specialized Exercise,” taking place from September 20 to 30, 2026, at the facilities of the National Training Center in Santa Gertrudis, Chihuahua. The authorization was formalized through a decree published in the Official Gazette of the Federation on Friday, September 25, 2026, on page 5. The measure enables the federal Executive to permit the entry of a military delegation from the United States with weaponry.

Constitutional basis and scope of the authorization

The decree was issued based on Article 76, fraction III, of the Political Constitution of the United Mexican States, which reserves for the Senate the power to authorize the departure of national troops and the passage of foreign forces through the country’s territory.

Article One of the decree states verbatim that the Senate of the Republic grants authorization to the head of the Federal Executive Power to permit the entry of the 139 military personnel, for the exclusive purpose of participating in the joint exercise in Santa Gertrudis.

The document specifies the following elements of the operation:

• Number of authorized personnel: 139 military personnel.
• Unit of origin: 101st Airborne Division of the United States Army.
• Event: “Joint Specialized Exercise”.
• Period of activities: from September 20 to 30, 2026.
• Venue: facilities of the National Training Center, Santa Gertrudis, Chihuahua.

Entry with weaponry and arrival route

Article Two of the decree details that the delegation belongs to the 101st Airborne Division of the United States Army and that their entry will be with weaponry aboard an aircraft of the United States Air Force.

The aircraft will arrive at the 5th Military Air Zone in Santa Gertrudis, Chihuahua, on September 20, 2026, and the delegation will return to its country of origin on September 30, 2026, according to the same article.

Validity, signatures, and publication

The transitory articles provide that the decree entered into force at the moment of its approval by the Senate and that it was to be published in the Official Gazette of the Federation.

The decree was approved in Mexico City on September 14, 2026, with the signatures of Senator Higinio Martínez Miranda, president, and Senator Claudia Tello Espinosa, secretary. The federal Executive issued it at the Residence of the Federal Executive Power, in Mexico City, on September 22, 2026, with the signature of President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo and the Secretary of the Interior, Rosa Icela Rodríguez Velázquez.

The official publication took place on Friday, September 25, 2026, in issue 260/2026 of the bulletin, within the Executive Branch section, under the heading Presidency of the Republic.

The authorization reopens the debate on bilateral military cooperation and the safeguarding of national sovereignty, as it involves the entry of armed foreign troops into Mexican territory. The decree limits the scope of the operation to a training exercise with specific dates, location, and military unit, and its publication in the official bulletin allows any citizen to verify the exact terms of the authorization granted by the Senate.

Source: Official Gazette of the Federation, No. 260/2026, Friday, September 25, 2026, Section I (Executive Branch), p. 5 (official reference: Decree of the Chamber of Senators of the Honorable Congress of the Union, DOF 09/25/2026).