President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Monday declaring that the United States would classify drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations, a decision that could advance a militarized approach to the border and Latin America.
Specifically, the executive order mainly affects Mexican drug cartels, but also some organized groups in Latin America such as the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua and Salvadoran gang Mara Salvatrucha.
These groups, the order reads, “threaten the safety of the American people, the security of the United States, and the stability of the international order in the Western Hemisphere.”
However, the executive order does not include a clear list of the groups, but it is specified that members of the administration will designate which groups will be identified as terrorist in the coming weeks.
Also within the order it states, “The Cartels have engaged in a campaign of violence and terror throughout the Western Hemisphere that has not only destabilized countries with significant importance for our national interests but also flooded the United States with deadly drugs, violent criminals, and vicious gangs,”
Additional measures included declaring a state of emergency at the U.S. border, pledging to implement a 25 percent tariff on Mexico and Canada by February 1, and permanently discontinuing the CBP One app, which enabled migrants to apply for asylum before arriving at the border.
President Trump reaffirmed his mass deportation initiative, touted in the election campaign, and to intervene militarily in Mexico to counter the cartels; this initiative was repeatedly rejected by Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum.
The potential impact on combating the cartels still remains uncertain, but there are concerns that it could further restrict access to the U.S. for individuals from countries where these groups operate. Additionally, many have voiced fears that labeling cartels as terrorists could provide the U.S. with justification for military action against them.
