How Donald Trump Can Win A War Against the Drug Cartels

In late January, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio wrote in the Wall Street Journal that Trump’s America First policy pays close attention to the Western Hemisphere. Rubio claimed that previous administrations have overlooked Latin America, and he pledged things would be different from now on.

In contrast with President Donald Trump’s strict policy toward countries such as Mexico and Canada, Rubio favors the relocation of critical supply chains to Latin America. This measure could accelerate Central American countries’ economic growth and reduce their reliance on China.

According to Rubio, reinforcing relations with Latin America could lead to higher growth in these countries while at the same time reducing incentives for emigration, and strengthening their governments’ capabilities to fight crime.

In a brief passage, Rubio mentions another significant threat to Latin America that is no less urgent: the increasingly dominant role of drug cartels in the region, and the presence of rogue regimes in countries such as Cuba, Nicaragua, and Venezuela. Rubio did not elaborate much on this point. Yet it is precisely on the topic of transnational crime and its enablers where cooperation with countries in the region is most essential.

Trump has defined drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations. This critical move allows the administration to use counterterrorism methods against them, such as launching covert operations and other means to fight transnational crime. The Trump administration has deployed more troops to the southern border, and in coordination with Mexico, the CIA is gathering intelligence on cartel operations. Those steps, according to James Fowler and Alicia Nieves from the Atlantic Council, may signal that the United States is ready for direct military action, “unilaterally or with the Mexican military, against cartels on Mexican soil.”

If this is the case, we are seeing, for the first time in a long time, a serious attempt to combat drug cartels, which are responsible not only for illicit activities and violence but also for weakening national and local governments, judicial institutions, and law enforcement. The chaos these cartels create makes the region one of the most anarchical territories in the world. As the late scholar Angel Rabasa rightly pointed out, ungoverned territories are breeding grounds for more crime and terrorism.

However, since Trump tends to reject the idea of direct U.S. involvement in military actions, cooperation with Latin American governments, especially Mexico, is essential. Threatening tariffs on Mexico—and Mexico’s reaction with reciprocal measures—does not help build such an important joint project. Indeed, reducing the cartels’ power is in the interest of Latin American countries and the United States. The administration must be careful not to alienate Mexico.

Not only have drug cartels cooperated with terrorist organizations such as Hezbollah (which already has a significant presence in Latin America), but some terrorist organizations, like the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), are themselves drug cartels. Revenue from cartels helps terrorist groups and their allies survive. As the United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research has concluded, “Criminal organizations increasingly adopt terrorist tactics to pursue their economic objectives. At the same time, terrorist organizations in Latin America have transformed into hybrid entities driven by both ideological beliefs and economic gains.”

Drug cartels also cooperate with governments. Such is the case in Venezuela, where drug revenue sustains the autocratic Maduro government.

According to a significant journalistic investigation, Venezuela is now a major cocaine transport center that ships tons of cocaine, mainly to the United States, making billions of dollars in revenue. The top Venezuelan political and military echelons constitute a drug cartel that also cooperates with Colombian guerillas, not only in drug trafficking but also in illegal gold-mining activities that involve widespread human rights violations including human trafficking, slavery, child labor, torture, amputations, and killing of workers.

Most recently, the Trump administration revoked Chevron’s license to pump Venezuela’s oil. This will hardly weaken the Maduro government, let alone change the regime. Furthermore, given the circumstances, it is more likely that such measures will affect the Venezuelan population rather than the regime itself.

The challenge for the Trump administration is two-fold. First, it is crucial to fight Maduro’s drug-trafficking activities and stop the activities that sustain the regime. Therefore, the administration should instruct the CIA and the Drug Enforcement Administration to develop a strategy to crack down on all the drug cartels in Latin America, as they weaken sovereign states, convert them into narco-states, and inflict violence and suffering on millions of people. That is precisely why the administration must maintain decent relations with governments such as Mexico, and with other groups in the region, that can help the United States eliminate these rogue entities.

Second, Trump is working to improve relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, and to a certain extent, he has succeeded. This is the time to ask for something in return. Since the mid-2000s, Venezuela has purchased almost $20 billion in military equipment from Russia, in exchange for future Venezuelan oil deliveries. Many of these weapons were transferred to Colombian guerrillas in the past, and now they are at risk of falling into the hands of irregular armed and criminal groups, including drug cartels and terrorist groups. Likewise, Russia has invested heavily in the country’s oil sector and helped Venezuela circumvent international sanctions.

Finally, Russia maintains military cooperation with countries that are hostile to the United States and cause instability in the region. Such alliances enable Russia to place naval logistical facilities within those countries’ territory.

Trump must demand Russia annul these agreements and withdraw its naval facilities from these countries.

Latin America is not another remote area of the world. It is in the same neighborhood as the United States. Indeed, it is essential to counteract China‘s economic and political influence in the region, as Secretary Rubio said. Having anarchy, crime, terrorism, and the Russian military next door is not suitable for America either.