The U.S. Army is providing training to Mexican soldiers for the first time in an effort to create an elite counternarcotics unit that U.S. officials say has become the leading force in Mexico’s fight against international drug trafficking. At least that’s what U.S. officials say. The program started 18 months ago, includes training more than a thousand Mexican officers a year at more than a dozen bases across the U. S., according to U.S. officials and congressional documents. In addition, the CIA is giving extensive intelligence courses.