President Donald Trump suggested that military action against Mexican drug cartels could be imminent, signaling a dramatic escalation in his administration’s war on narcotics trafficking.
During an interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity, Trump said the U.S. has already crippled maritime drug smuggling and is now preparing to shift its focus to land-based cartel operations.
“We’ve knocked out 97% of the drugs coming in by water, and we are going to start now hitting land, with regard to the cartels,” Trump said. He added that criminal organizations are “running Mexico,” calling the situation “very sad to watch.”
Trump tied the potential action to the devastating toll drug trafficking has taken on the United States, noting that overdoses kill more than 100,000 Americans every year.
His remarks come after the U.S. military conducted more than two dozen maritime strikes against Venezuelan and Colombian drug trafficking vessels in recent months, operations Trump cited as a model for future enforcement.
The president’s comments also follow a major policy shift earlier in his second term, when his administration formally designated several major cartels as terrorist organizations.
On his first day back in office, Trump signed Executive Order 14157, titled “Designating Cartels and Other Organizations as Foreign Terrorist Organizations and Specially Designated Global Terrorists.”
That order paved the way for expanded counterterrorism authorities against drug cartels operating in Mexico and across the Western Hemisphere.
On Feb. 6, 2025, Secretary of State Marco Rubio determined that eight criminal entities met the legal criteria for designation as both Foreign Terrorist Organizations and Specially Designated Global Terrorists.
Those designations took effect on Feb. 20, 2025, following their publication in the Federal Register, per Trending Politics.
The list includes major Mexican cartels such as the Sinaloa Cartel, Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación, Cártel del Noreste, the Gulf Cartel, La Nueva Familia Michoacana, and Cárteles Unidos.
Transnational gangs Mara Salvatrucha, commonly known as MS-13, and Tren de Aragua were also included in the designations.
The terrorist labels allow the U.S. government to impose sweeping sanctions, freeze assets, and pursue criminal charges against anyone found financing or coordinating with the designated groups.
They also open the door to potential military or intelligence operations under existing counterterrorism authorities.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum reacted sharply to Trump’s remarks, warning that unilateral U.S. military action would violate Mexico’s sovereignty.
Sheinbaum instructed her foreign minister, Juan Ramon de la Fuente, to urgently engage with U.S. officials and explore diplomatic alternatives to military intervention.
She also argued that U.S.-made weapons fuel cartel violence and suggested deeper security cooperation and trade incentives as a better solution.
Trump offered no specific details on the timing or scope of potential land-based operations but suggested action could come within weeks.
Possible scenarios include targeted drone strikes on cartel leadership or fentanyl laboratories, mirroring recent maritime operations aimed at disrupting international drug trafficking networks.
