Colombia USA deploys aircraft carrier to Latin America
The US government's fight against drug cartels from Latin America has reached a new level of escalation: US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has sent an aircraft carrier to the region, just hours after the latest attack on a boat allegedly loaded with drugs came to light. US President Donald Trump also announced a crackdown on drug smugglers - both at sea and on land. However, there has been a lot of criticism of the approach taken so far.
24.10.2025, 21:31
24.10.2025, 21:32
SDA
Hegseth, who now calls himself Secretary of War, made public a new strike against alleged drug smugglers at sea on Friday. Hegseth announced on X that a ship in international waters had been attacked overnight on Trump's instructions, which the Pentagon attributed to the Venezuelan drug gang Tren de Aragua.
Hegseth threatened to continue to take consistent action against drug cartels. This puts him in line with Trump. "I think we're just going to kill people who bring drugs into our country," the president said on Thursday. He again held out the prospect of taking action against the cartels on land. Trump announced that he would inform parliament of the next steps. He had already said on Wednesday: "We will hit them very hard if they come by land." He did not provide details on when and how these attacks would be carried out.
Trump: permission for further attacks not necessary
However, Trump does not want to seek explicit permission from the US parliament for further attacks on drug smugglers. A journalist had previously asked why Trump would not ask Congress for a formal declaration of war if he had already declared war on the cartels and the Republican-dominated parliament would probably approve his request. Trump replied: "I don't think we will necessarily ask for a declaration of war."
According to the constitution, the US president is the commander-in-chief of the armed forces, but only Congress can officially declare war. In practice, few presidents have chosen this route - more often they have opted for other legal instruments that allow them to order military operations without a formal declaration of war.
US attacks at sea for weeks
In recent weeks, the US military has repeatedly attacked boats allegedly carrying drugs in the Caribbean and the Pacific. Dozens of people are said to have been killed in the process. The actions attracted a great deal of criticism, partly because the legal basis for the attacks is unclear. The United Nations called on the US government to exercise restraint.
US media recently reported that the President's assessment of the situation is that the United States is in an "armed conflict" with drug cartels. According to the report, the US government classifies the drug cartels and suspected smugglers associated with them as "unlawful combatants".
Trump draws a parallel with religiously motivated terrorism and called the drug cartels "the Islamic State of the Western Hemisphere". Hegseth compares them to the Islamist terrorist organization al-Qaeda.
Lula criticizes the actions of the USA
Shortly before a possible meeting with Trump at the Asean summit in Malaysia, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva criticized the recent US military attacks against suspected drug smugglers off the coasts of South America. "If this prevails, everyone will believe they can invade each other's territory to do what they want," said Lula on a trip to Indonesia, according to a report by TV Globo. "Where is the respect for the sovereignty of countries then?"
Concerns about escalation: troop deployment and maneuvers
In view of the latest developments, there is growing concern in the region that there could be an escalation: According to media reports, the US military has already deployed fighter jets, naval vessels and helicopters to the Caribbean in recent weeks.
The aircraft carrier "USS Gerald R. Ford" that has now been deployed is powered by a nuclear reactor. The 333-metre-long ship is named after the 38th President of the USA and has space for up to 90 fighter planes and helicopters as well as several thousand soldiers.
For its part, the Venezuelan military practised national defense during a maneuver. Air defense units were stationed at strategic points, said President Nicolás Maduro. Any attempt at destabilization would fail, said Venezuela's defence minister Vladimir Padrino López.
