In a statement to Congress, the president describes drug traffickers as 'illegal combatants.'
The notice to Congress states that, "based on the cumulative effects of these hostile acts against citizens and interests of the United States and friendly foreign nations, the president has determined that the United States is in a non-international armed conflict with these designated terrorist organizations."
According to the document, this recognition enables U.S. forces to act with extraordinary resources to neutralize threats, including detaining members of these groups and destroying their trafficking routes.
One of the recent attacks highlighted in the report involved the action of U.S. Special Operations Forces against a ship in the Caribbean Sea, identified as belonging to a terrorist organization dedicated to illegal drug trafficking. The notice described the criminals as "unlawful combatants," noting that their activity represented a direct risk to national security.
The White House reaffirmed that the strategy seeks not only to curb the entry of illicit drugs into the United States but also to strengthen international cooperation to combat drug trafficking networks, protecting the lives of millions of Americans affected by the drug crisis.
President Donald Trump formally declared that the United States is in an "armed conflict" against drug cartels, many of which have been designated by his administration as terrorist organizations.
The announcement, communicated to Congress in an official notice obtained by The New York Times, marks a significant step forward in Washington's strategy to confront international drug trafficking networks that threaten national security.
The document describes the recent military attacks authorized by Trump against vessels suspected of drug trafficking in the Caribbean Sea as legitimate operations within this armed conflict, whose purpose is to eradicate drug trafficking and reduce the devastating impact of illicit drugs, such as fentanyl, which cause tens of thousands of deaths annually in the United States.
Anna Kelly, White House spokesperson, told The New York Times that "the president acted in accordance with the law of armed conflict to protect our country from those who attempt to bring deadly poison to our shores, and he is fulfilling his promise to confront the cartels and eliminate these threats to national security that kill more Americans."
