Trump Directs U.S. Military to Target Drug Cartels Classified as Terrorist Groups

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) — In a significant escalation of its campaign against drug trafficking, United States President Donald Trump has secretly ordered the Pentagon to prepare for military operations against Latin American drug cartels, a move that empowers the armed forces to undertake missions traditionally handled by law enforcement, according to extensive reporting by The New York Times and Fox News.

The directive, which follows the administration's recent designation of several cartels as foreign terrorist organizations, provides an official basis for potential direct American military action at sea and on foreign soil, signaling a more aggressive posture in the effort to curb the flow of fentanyl and other illegal drugs into the United States.

According to people familiar with the sensitive internal deliberations who spoke to The New York Times on the condition of anonymity, U.S. military officials have already begun the process of drawing up options for how the armed forces could engage these groups. The decision represents the most aggressive step yet in the administration's expanding campaign against the cartels and underscores President Trump's willingness to deploy military might for what has historically been a law enforcement responsibility.

When asked about the authorization, a White House spokeswoman, Anna Kelly, told The New York Times that "President Trump’s top priority is protecting the homeland, which is why he took the bold step to designate several cartels and gangs as foreign terrorist organizations." Fox News Digital received a similar statement from Ms. Kelly. The Defense Department, however, declined to comment on the new directive when approached by The New York Times.

The groundwork for this policy shift was laid earlier this year. Upon returning to office in January, Mr. Trump signed an order directing the State Department to begin labeling drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations. The New York Times reports that in February, the State Department designated several groups, including Tren de Aragua and Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13), stating they constituted "a national-security threat beyond that posed by traditional organized crime."

This was followed two weeks ago by the designation of the Venezuelan Cartel de los Soles, or Cartel of the Suns, as a specially designated global terrorist group. The administration asserts this cartel is headed by Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and other high-ranking officials. In a related move, Attorney General Pam Bondi announced on Thursday that the U.S. government is doubling a reward to $50 million for information leading to the arrest of Mr. Maduro, who is under U.S. indictment on drug trafficking charges.

In a video message reported by Fox News, Ms. Bondi stated, "He is one of the largest narco-traffickers in the world and a threat to our national security."

Unilateral military assaults on these organizations would mark a profound change in the long-running effort to counter drug trafficking, placing U.S. forces in a direct, leading role against well-armed and well-financed criminal enterprises.

The New York Times notes that such a move raises complex legal questions, including whether U.S. forces killing criminal suspects who do not pose an imminent threat outside of a congressionally authorized conflict would be considered "murder" under the law. It remains unclear what legal guidance has been provided by White House, Pentagon, or State Department lawyers, or if the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel has issued a formal opinion on the matter.

Brian Finucane, a former State Department lawyer and specialist in the laws of war, told The New York Times that targeting individuals based on their suspected cartel membership outside of an armed conflict would raise issues with laws against murder and a longstanding executive order banning assassinations.

Marco Rubio, the secretary of state and national security adviser, articulated the administration's rationale in an interview with the Catholic news outlet EWTN, as reported by The New York Times.

Labeling the cartels as terrorist groups, he said, allows the U.S. "to use other elements of American power, intelligence agencies, the Department of Defense, whatever, to target these groups if we have an opportunity to do it." He added, "We have to start treating them as armed terrorist organizations, not simply drug dealing organizations."

However, legal specialists cited by The New York Times caution that while a "terrorist" designation allows for financial sanctions, it does not, under current U.S. law, provide automatic legal authority for military-style armed operations. Such action would likely need to rely on a claim of the president's constitutional authority to act in national self-defense.

This new directive appears to envision a different approach from past U.S. counter-narcotics efforts. Historically, U.S. military involvement has been framed as support for law enforcement. The New York Times recounted that the U.S. Navy has long intercepted suspected drug-smuggling vessels, but typically does so under the command of a U.S. Coast Guard officer to comply with the Posse Comitatus Act, which generally bars the use of the military for domestic law enforcement.

The new directive, however, seems to focus on U.S. forces directly capturing or killing individuals involved in the drug trade. The idea of using military force against cartels has been a recurring theme for President Trump, who vowed on the campaign trail to deploy Special Operations troops and naval forces to, as he put it, declare war on the cartels.

The policy has already faced international pushback. According to The New York Times, President Trump proposed to President Claudia Sheinbaum of Mexico in April that she permit the U.S. military to operate against cartels on Mexican soil, an idea she rejected.

Following the recent reports, President Sheinbaum reiterated this stance on Friday, stating, "It has nothing to do with Mexican territory," as reported by Fox News. "It has to do with their country. It does not involve our territory."

The anti-cartel effort is reportedly being coordinated across multiple government departments, including Defense, Justice, Homeland Security, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, and the Treasury, according to a source close to the White House who spoke to the New York Post, as cited by Fox News. The source added that the president is determined to "completely destroy" the Cartel de los Soles.