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- Supplies accepted: The war on cartels has failed to reduce drug trafficking in the United States
Supplies accepted: The war on cartels has failed to reduce drug trafficking in the United States
In several months of brutal struggle against drug trafficking from Latin American countries, Donald Trump has failed to achieve impressive results. This follows from the statistics of the US border guard service, which was analyzed by Izvestia. Moreover, in total, from January to September, even slightly more illegal substances were brought into the States than in the same period of time in 2024, that is, under the administration of Joe Biden, who did not lead such an active campaign against drugs. At least 75 people have become victims of American attacks on ships in the Caribbean, and now Washington is preparing to launch a new operation Southern Spear. In Moscow, what is happening is being watched with concern.
The United States has failed to reduce the volume of drug trafficking into the country
The US campaign to combat the supply of drugs from Latin America entered an active phase in August. Then the American president signed a secret order that gives the Pentagon permission to use military force against the cartels. Since then, the United States has carried out at least 19 attacks on ships in the Caribbean, killing about 75 people — according to the American authorities, all of them are related to the distribution of prohibited substances. However, in fact, the campaign, which threatens to turn into a military confrontation, has not brought significant results.
— It is believed that the United States has managed to reduce the supply of methamphetamine drugs somewhat. But we know that the bulk of drug trafficking in the United States is made up of heavier drugs, in particular fentanyl. And there is no reduction in traffic here. As for methamphetamine, it can also be manufactured in the United States itself, so the effectiveness of measures to seize shipments is low. We cannot talk about reducing the traffic of cocaine and the cocaine group of drugs, because there are fairly stable supplies here," explained Ivan Loshkarev, associate professor of the MGIMO Department of Political Theory.
Maritime traffic actually accounts for about half of all shipments, the expert stressed. In a situation where there is an increased fight against drugs on one route, cartels transfer the same goods to others, says Loshkarev. For example, there are entire networks of tunnels on the US border through which drugs enter the country. It is likely that this is the situation we are witnessing right now.
The official figures of the US Customs Service also indicate the lack of effectiveness of the campaign. From January to September 2025, 211 thousand kg of prohibited substances were seized under the administration of Donald Trump. At the same time, during the same period a year ago, when Joe Biden was in power, who did not lead such an active campaign against drugs, 206 thousand kg were confiscated.
In general, the indicators are similar in other areas. For example, in the first nine months of this year, attempts to import 65.5 thousand kg of marijuana were stopped, when under Biden — 58.6 thousand kg. Under Trump, 50.7 thousand kg of cocaine were seized in the first nine months of 2025, and 56.6 thousand kg during the same period under Biden.
The situation with the supply of fentanyl is as follows: 7.5 thousand kg were seized under the last president and 3.4 thousand kg under the current one. At the same time, the media writes that it is highly likely that the drug is supplied through other channels, as yet unknown to official services. In particular, it is noted that fentanyl manufacturers could start transporting the drug in small batches through security services and courier services.
— Measures to seize some shipments and arrest small-scale drug traffickers, who can then turn over their direct supervisors and help, with proper encouragement from law enforcement, uncover a significant part of the cartel network, are certainly not useless, but the fight against drug trafficking is primarily about raising people's awareness of the potential harm of these substances, and possibly replacing them with what"It's with medications that reduce addiction," Loshkarev explained.
Measures that eliminate the direct production of drugs on the territory of Latin American countries themselves can also be effective. But this requires active cooperation with individual states and the activation of actions by local authorities.
American operation in the Caribbean
However, Washington has historically had strained relations with Caracas. Therefore, the US invasion or at least targeted strikes on the territory of Venezuela, which has recently been preparing to repel potential US aggression, remains on the agenda.
At the same time, the head of the Pentagon, Pete Hegseth, announced the launch of Operation Southern Spear. So far, however, we are not talking about direct intervention.
The head of the Defense Department did not specify what exactly he was talking about, since information about the Southern Spear has been on the website of the US Navy since the end of January 2025. It is understood that robotic ships, small robotic interceptor boats, special aircraft, and UAVs will be involved during the operation.
Earlier, the US Southern Command reported that artillery exercises were taking place in the Caribbean on the landing ship USS Iwo Jima in support of Trump's decree to curb drug trafficking. In addition to this vessel, according to Newsweek, there are several destroyers in the immediate vicinity of Venezuela: USS Gravely, USS Jason Dunham, USS Sampson, the cruiser USS Lake Erie and the coastal warship USS Minneapolis-Saint Paul. The zone includes F-35B fighter jets, V-22 Osprey, MQ-9 Reaper drones, P-8 Poseidon patrol aircraft and personnel at the Roosevelt Roads base in Puerto Rico. Within a few days, the aircraft carrier Gerald R. Ford will approach the shores of Venezuela.
Against this background, at the beginning of the week, the head of the Bolivarian Republic signed a law on the creation of defense commands at the level of the entire country, each state and 335 municipalities. They will unite the armed forces, law enforcement agencies, government agencies and people's organizations into a common system of national protection. Through CNN, Nicolas Maduro addressed the citizens of the United States during the rally.
"[I urge the US population] to unite for peace [in America], enough endless wars, enough unfair wars, enough Libya and Afghanistan," he told a TV channel correspondent.
President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela Nicolas Maduro
Moscow is anxiously monitoring the situation in the Caribbean.
"We hope that no actions will be taken that could lead to destabilization of the situation in the Caribbean and around Venezuela. And that everything will be in accordance with international law," Dmitry Peskov, the press secretary of the President of the Russian Federation, told reporters.
Drug trafficking is carried out mainly not through Venezuela, but along Pacific routes, with Colombia, Peru, Bolivia, and Mexico as the main suppliers. If there are supply routes through Venezuela, it is no more than 10-15%, Magomed Kodzoev, senior researcher at the Institute of Latin America of the Russian Academy of Sciences, told Izvestia.
— There is a combination of various factors, including political ones. The conflict between the United States and Venezuela has been going on for quite a long time, and the topic of drug terrorism was far from the most important in their relations. Trump's aggressive approach is driven by a new doctrine regarding Latin America. And it is caused by the desire to inflict such a defeat on Venezuela, which would force the rest of the countries of the region to take a different look at Washington's role here. It's a kind of intimidation action," says Kodzoev.
In matters of drug trafficking, this whole story can only have an indirect meaning, the expert concluded.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
