Mexico rejects reported U.S. military plan to target drug cartels
Mexican President, Claudia Sheinbaum has dismissed the possibility of U.S. troops operating on Mexican soil, following reports that U.S. President Donald Trump had authorized the Pentagon to prepare for military action against Latin American drug cartels.
“The United States is not going to come to Mexico with the military,” Sheinbaum told reporters. “We cooperate, we collaborate, but there is not going to be an invasion. That is ruled out, absolutely ruled out.”
Her comments came after The New York Times reported that Trump had secretly signed a directive granting the Pentagon authority to conduct direct military operations against drug cartels abroad.
The reported order follows Trump’s earlier executive designation of eight cartels as terrorist organizations, six of which are based in Mexico.
While the White House did not confirm the directive, it reiterated in a statement to the BBC that the president’s “top priority is protecting the homeland.”
Sheinbaum said her government was informed in advance that new measures targeting cartels were planned but stressed they involved no U.S. military deployment in Mexico.
“It is not part of any agreement, far from it. When it has been brought up, we have always said ‘No’,” she added.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, said Thursday, that the terrorist designation would allow Washington to use intelligence and defense resources against cartels.
“We have to start treating them as armed terrorist organizations, not simply drug-dealing organizations,” Rubio said.
Despite the tensions, Mexico and the U.S. have recently intensified cooperation on border security and anti-narcotics efforts.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection data shows June recorded the lowest number of illegal border crossings on record, while fentanyl seizures dropped by more than half compared to earlier this year.
U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Ronald Johnson praised the joint efforts on X, writing that cooperation between Sheinbaum and Trump had left cartels “going bankrupt” and both countries “safer because of it.”
Mexico rejects reported U.S. military plan to target drug cartels
