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Military Wiki
Mexico
Office for National Defense
Secretaría de la Defensa Nacional
SEDENA logo 2012
Logo of the Mexican Office for National Defense
Flag of the Mexican Secretariat of National Defense
Flag of the Mexican Office for National Defense
Guidon of the Mexican Secretariat of National Defense
Standard of the Mexican Office for National Defense
Agency overview
Jurisdiction Mexico
Headquarters Boulevard Manuel Ávila Camacho 172, Irrigación, Secretaría de la Defensa Nacional, 11200 Mexico City
19°26′25″N 99°12′57″W / 19.44028°N 99.21583°W / 19.44028; -99.21583
Agency executive

The Mexican Office for National Defence (SEDENA; Spanish language: Secretaría de la Defensa Nacional ) is the government department responsible for managing Mexico's Army and Air Forces. Its head is the Director for National Defense who, like the co-equal Director of the Navy, is directly answerable to the President.[1] Before 1937, the position was called the Director for War and of the Navy (Secretaría de Guerra y Marina). The agency has its headquarters in Lomas de Sotelo, Miguel Hidalgo, Mexico City.[2] Some key figures who answer directly to the Director are the Assistant Director, the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces, and all military tribunals. Under the Federal Public Administration Act (Ley Orgánica de la Administración Pública Federal), the Secretary has the following duties:

  • Organize, administer and prepare the Army and the Air Force.
  • Organize and prepare the National Military Service.
  • Management of the Army, Air Force, National Guard and armed contingents which don't belong to state's national guard.
  • Plan, direct and handle mobilization of the country in the event of war; formulating and executing, in due case, plans and orders necessary to the country defense, as well as directing and advising civil defense.
  • Construct and prepare the forts and all kind of military buildings for Army and Air Force use, as well as administration of barracks, hospitals and other military buildings.
  • Administer military justice.
  • Acquire and build armaments, ammunition, and all kinds of materials and elements for the use of Army and Air Force.
  • Grant permission for an expedition force to enter another country or to allow another country to send their forces to Mexico.
  • Manage the issuing of licenses to bear firearms with the aim of preventing the use of arms expressly banned in law and also those types of arms restricted by the state for the exclusive use of the Army, Navy and National Guard, with the exception of what is established by the 13th section of Article 30 of the Constitution, as well as the supervision and issuing of permits for the sale, transport and storage of firearms, chemical weapons, explosives and strategic weapons.

List of Directors[]

Name Took office Left office Time in office President
1Escamilla, PabloGeneral de brigada Pablo Quiroga Escamilla [es]
(1875–1948)
193419350–1 yearsdel Río, LázaroLázaro Cárdenas del Río
2Figueroa, AndrésAndrés Figueroa Figueroa [es]
(1884–1936)
19351936 †0–1 yearsdel Río, LázaroLázaro Cárdenas del Río
3
Manuel Ávila Camacho
Figueroa, AndrésManuel Ávila Camacho
(1897–1955)
193619392–3 yearsdel Río, LázaroLázaro Cárdenas del Río
4Castro, JesúsGeneral de División Jesús Agustín Castro [es]
(1887–1953)
193919400–1 yearsdel Río, LázaroLázaro Cárdenas del Río
5
Jesús Agustín Castro [es]
Castro, JesúsJesús Agustín Castro [es]
(1891–1975)
194019421–2 yearsCamacho, ManuelManuel Ávila Camacho
6
Lázaro Cárdenas
Castro, JesúsGeneral de División Lázaro Cárdenas
(1895–1970)
194219452–3 yearsCamacho, ManuelManuel Ávila Camacho
7
Francisco L
Urquizo, FranciscoGeneral de División Francisco L. Urquizo
(1891–1969)
194519460–1 yearsCamacho, ManuelManuel Ávila Camacho
8Urquizo, FranciscoGilberto R. Limón [es]
(1891–1988)
194619525–6 yearsAlemán, MiguelMiguel Alemán
9
Matías Ramos [es]
Ramos, MatiasGeneral de División Matías Ramos [es]
(1891–1962)
195219585–6 yearsCortines, AdolfoAdolfo Ruiz Cortines
10Olachea, AgustínGeneral de División Agustín Olachea
(1890–1974)
195819645–6 yearsMateos, AdolfoAdolfo López Mateos
11Barragan, MarcelinoGeneral de División Marcelino García Barragan [es]
(1895–1979)
196419705–6 yearsOrdaz, GustavoGustavo Díaz Ordaz
12Díaz, HermenegildoHermenegildo Cuenca Díaz [es]
(1902–1977)
197019765–6 yearsÁlvarez, LuisLuis Echeverría Álvarez
13López, FélixGeneral de División Félix Galván López [es]
(1913–1988)
197630 November 19825–6 yearsPortillo, JoséJosé López Portillo
14Gardoqui, JuanGeneral de División Juan Arévalo Gardoqui
(1921–2000)
198230 November 19885–6 yearsHurtado, MiguelMiguel de la Madrid Hurtado
15Gardoqui, JuanGeneral de División Antonio Riviello Bazán [es]
(1926–2017)
1 December 198830 November 19946 yearsGortari, CarlosCarlos Salinas de Gortari
16
Enrique Cervantes Aguirre [es]
Aguirre, EnriqueGeneral de División Enrique Cervantes Aguirre [es]
(born 1935)
1 December 199430 November 20006 yearsZedillo, ErnestoErnesto Zedillo
17
Gerardo Clemente Vega
Vega, GerardoGeneral de División Gerardo Clemente Vega
(born 1940)
1 December 200030 November 20066 yearsFox, VicenteVicente Fox
18
Guillermo Galván Galván
Galván, GuillermoGeneral de División Guillermo Galván Galván
(born 1943)
1 December 200630 November 20126 yearsCalderón, FelipeFelipe Calderón
19
Salvador Cienfuegos Zepeda
Zepeda, Salvador Cienfuegos'General Secretario Salvador Cienfuegos Zepeda
(born 1948)
1 December 201230 November 20186 yearsNieto, Enrique PeñaEnrique Peña Nieto
20Sandoval González, Luis CresencioGeneral de División Luis Cresencio Sandoval[3]
(born 1960)
1 December 201830 November 20246 yearsLópez Obrador, Andrés ManuelAndrés Manuel López Obrador

See also[]

  • Museo del Enervante - a Sedena museum dedicated to those who have fought drug trafficking in Mexico.
  • Zuyaqui - a famous dog who worked for the agency.

Sources[]

  1. Mexico's Federal Organic Law of Public AdministrationLey Orgánica de la Administración Pública Federal, Article 29 Archived 2006-06-15 at the Wayback Machine.
  2. "Home." Secretariat of National Defense. Retrieved on February 15, 2011. "Blvd. Manuel Ávila Camacho S/N. Esq. Av. Ind. Mil., Col. Lomas de Sotelo; Deleg. Miguel Hidalgo, D.F. C.P. 11640."
  3. "Quien es el Gral. Luis C. Sandoval, proximo Secretario de Defensa" (in Spanish). Mexico City. October 22, 2018. https://www.eluniversal.com.mx/nacion/seguridad/quien-es-el-gral-luis-c-sandoval-proximo-secretario-de-defensa. Retrieved June 24, 2019. 

External links[]

Coordinates: 19°26′24″N 99°12′58″W / 19.440°N 99.216°W / 19.440; -99.216

{{Wikipedia|{{subst:Secretariat of National Defense (Mexico)}}