US media reported on 8/8 that President Donald Trump directed the Pentagon to prepare options for using military force against cartels designated as terrorist organizations. Options under discussion include using special forces and providing intelligence support, with all actions coordinated with foreign partners.
White House Deputy Spokesperson Anna Kelly did not confirm the report but stated that President Trump's top priority is protecting the country, which is why he "took the bold step of designating certain criminal gangs and drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations".
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US President Donald Trump at the White House on 7/8. Photo: AFP |
US President Donald Trump at the White House on 7/8. Photo: AFP
In February, the US designated Venezuela's Tren de Aragua, Mexico's Sinaloa Cartel, and six other drug trafficking groups with origins in Latin America as terrorist groups.
The Trump administration later added another Venezuelan gang, the Cartel of the Suns, accused of smuggling hundreds of tons of drugs into the US over two decades, to the list.
On his first day back at the White House, Trump signed an executive order establishing a process for designating drug cartels as terrorist organizations. He argued that these cartels "pose a national security threat beyond traditional organized crime".
In an interview on 6/8, US Senator Marco Rubio said this designation allows "us to target their operations and use other elements of US power, intelligence agencies, the Department of Defense, or any other means".
"We must start treating drug cartels as armed terrorist organizations, not just drug trafficking organizations," Rubio said. "This is no longer a law enforcement issue; it has become a national security issue."
In March, Trump announced he would launch a war against Mexican drug cartels, which he accused of rape and murder. Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum denied on 8/8 that the US would take military action on Mexican territory to target drug cartels, emphasizing that the two countries are cooperating to address the issue.
President Sheinbaum has been working to demonstrate to Trump that she is taking action against the Mexican cartels, which the US president accuses of flooding the US with drugs, especially fentanyl.
Huyen Le (AFP, Washington Post)
