President Donald Trump quietly signed a directive ordering the Pentagon to begin using military force against Latin American drug cartels that the administration has labeled as terrorist organizations, The New York Times reported Friday morning.
The order includes an official basis for the United States military to conduct anti-cartel operations in foreign countries, and military officials have already begun drafting plans for going after certain groups, the Times reported, citing “people familiar with the conversations.” It was not immediately clear which specific gangs or drug cartels Trump’s new directive greenlights military operations against.
Under Trump, the United States has designated seven drug cartels and two international criminal gangs as foreign terrorist organizations: Tren de Aragua (TdA), Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13), Cártel de Sinaloa, Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG), Cártel del Noreste (CDN), La Nueva Familia Michoacana (LNFM), Cártel de Golfo (CDG), and Cárteles Unidos (CU). The Trump administration recently added the Venezuelan Cartel de los Soles to its list, saying that it is operated by Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and other high-ranking government officials, according to the Times. On Thursday, the United States upped the bounty on Maduro to $50 million, pointing to his ties to transnational gangs and drug cartels.
“Maduro uses foreign terrorist organizations like TDA, Sinaloa, and Cartel of the Suns to bring deadly drugs and violence into our country. To date, the DEA has seized 30 tons of cocaine linked to Maduro and his associates with nearly seven tons linked to Maduro himself,” said Attorney General Pam Bondi.
Most of the cartels designated by the Trump administration as terrorist organizations operate in Mexico, while TdA’s roots are in Venezuela, and MS-13 originated in Los Angeles as a Salvadoran street gang. Both TdA and MS-13 also have cells operating in Central America, according to the State Department.
Trump’s order is among the most significant steps he has taken to fulfill his promise to “wage war” on cartels that have trafficked fentanyl and other drugs into the United States, leading to the deaths of tens of thousands of Americans. In May, President Trump said he offered Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum a deal that would send U.S. troops into Mexico to fight drug cartels.
“They are horrible people that have been killing people left and right. They’ve made a fortune on selling drugs and destroying our people,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One. “If Mexico wanted help with the cartels, we would be honored to go in and do it.”
Sheinbaum rejected Trump’s proposal, saying, “Sovereignty is not for sale. Sovereignty is loved and defended.”
“We will never accept the presence of the United States military in our territory,” she added.