- President Trump supports aggressive action against drug cartels and narcotics.
- He did not rule out interventions on Mexican territory to stop drug smuggling.
- He hinted at the possibility of liquidating cocaine production laboratories in Colombia.
- Šeinbaumova rejected unilateral US actions on Mexican territory.
US President Donald Trump said Monday that he supports aggressive action against drug cartels and narcotics production in Mexico and Colombia. He also did not rule out the possibility of intervention if it would stop drug smuggling into the United States, TASR reports, according to Reuters and AFP reports.
“It’s fine by me, whatever we have to do to stop the drugs (going to the US),” the US president said in reference to possible strikes on Mexican soil. However, he emphasized that he has not yet decided on this step.
Although the White House chief did not directly confirm any military intervention by the United States, he hinted at the possibility of targeting cocaine production laboratories in Colombia. “Would I destroy those factories? I would be proud if I could do it personally… I didn’t say I would, but I would be proud if I could because we would save millions of lives.” he added.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum denied at the beginning of the month that unilateral US action should take place on Mexican territory. She was responding to reports that the United States was preparing detailed plans for a new anti-cartel mission, including sending troops and intelligence personnel to Mexico.
Trump and Colombian President Gustavo Petro exchanged sharp statements regarding the strategy to fight drugs, which increases the tension between Washington and Bogotá. In October, the US imposed sanctions on Petra following Trump’s accusations that it refuses to stop the flow of cocaine into the United States. Last week Petro ordered Colombian security forces to suspend the provision of intelligence to the United Statesuntil Washington stops attacking vessels in the Caribbean and the Pacific Ocean.
The U.S. military has been attacking alleged drug-trafficking ships in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific since early September. The Pentagon confirmed to the DPA agency on Sunday that there were at least 20 attacks with a total of 79 victims. However, Washington has not released evidence that the individuals targeted were actually drug traffickers.
VENEZUELA’S PRESIDENT IS READY TO NEGOTIATE WITH TRUMP IN PERSON
Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro announced on Monday evening that he is ready to negotiate personally with his American counterpart, Donald Trump. A few hours earlier, the head of the White House mentioned the possibility of talks between the two leaders in connection with the growing military tension in the Caribbeaninforms TASR according to an AFP report.
“This country (Venezuela) will continue to live in peace and in the United States anyone who wants to talk to Venezuela will talk face to face without any problems,” said Maduro. His re-election last year was called a fraud by Washington, AFP reminds. Trump announced on Monday that he plans to talk to Maduro. “I’ll talk to him at some point,” the US president confirmed, adding that the Venezuelan leader “has not been very good to the United States”.
The tension between Washington and Caracas is related to the US military presence off the coast of Latin America and attacks on vessels allegedly smuggling drugs. So far, they have claimed dozens of victimsbut Washington has not released evidence that these vessels were actually used for drug smuggling. The Trump administration accuses the Venezuelan president of supporting international drug crime.
On Sunday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has even announced that the United States intends to classify the cartel it says is led by Maduro as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO). The Venezuelan president, on the other hand, claims that the US is using the fight against drugs as a pretext for forced regime change in the country in order to gain access to its oil.
