Trump Declares US In ‘Armed Conflict’ With South American Drug Cartels
President Donald J. Trump has formally designated major drug cartels as “unlawful combatants” and declared that the United States is engaged in an armed conflict with them, according to a classified administration memo obtained by the Associated Press.
The move follows a series of U.S. military strikes last month against narco-trafficking vessels in the Caribbean, marking the most aggressive step yet in Trump’s effort to treat cartel operations as a national security threat rather than a mere law enforcement issue.
“The President determined that the United States is in a non-international armed conflict with these designated terrorist organizations,” the memo states, directing the War Department to “conduct operations against them pursuant to the law of armed conflict.”
Trump has long argued that Mexican and South American cartels are responsible for flooding America with poison, fueling the fentanyl epidemic, and contributing to record numbers of American deaths. By invoking wartime powers, the administration is signaling it will treat cartel operatives the same way it treats foreign terrorist organizations such as ISIS or al-Qaeda.
A Major Expansion of Trump’s America First Doctrine
While Trump has consistently opposed endless foreign wars, he has also vowed to use overwhelming force when America is under direct threat. According to the White House, the new framework is not a foreign intervention but an act of self-defense.
“We have reached a critical point where we must use force in self-defense and defense of others against ongoing attacks by these terrorist organizations,” the memo says.
The AP reported that a Sept. 15 strike destroyed a narco-boat, eliminating its drug cargo and killing three cartel operatives. Defense officials confirmed that at least eight U.S. warships and more than 5,000 sailors and Marines are now patrolling the Caribbean — the largest naval presence in the region in decades.
Critics Cry “Overreach”
Some national security experts expressed concern about the implications. Matthew Waxman, who served in the George W. Bush administration, told AP the move represents “a very far stretch of international law.” He warned it allows lethal targeting and indefinite detention of cartel members without trial.
Meanwhile, several senators have raised questions about Congress’s role in authorizing such strikes after being briefed behind closed doors this week. House staffers received similar briefings last week.
But the White House maintains the president is acting squarely within his constitutional authority as commander-in-chief.
“As we have said many times, the President acted in line with the law of armed conflict to protect our country from those trying to bring deadly poison to our shores,” a White House statement read. “He is delivering on his promise to take on the cartels and eliminate these threats from murdering more Americans.”
Cartels on Notice
The administration’s stance means cartels can no longer hide behind the label of “criminal organizations.” By defining them as unlawful combatants, the U.S. military has new latitude to strike cartel leaders, seize assets, and treat smuggling operations as acts of war rather than routine crime.
For years, Trump has warned that fentanyl traffickers kill more Americans annually than foreign wars ever have. With this declaration, the administration is drawing a sharp red line: cartels will be hunted like terrorists.