US President Donald Trump reportedly signed a secret directive authorizing the military to act against drug-trafficking cartels and other Latin American criminal organizations designated as terrorist groups. The reported order broadened the administration's options but did not signal that a military operation was imminent.
The New York Times first reported the directive, according to Al Jazeera. Secretary of State Marco Rubio had said a day earlier that the terrorist designation allowed the United States to use military, intelligence and other government capabilities when opportunities arose. Groups placed on the foreign terrorist organization list included the Sinaloa Cartel, Venezuela-linked Tren de Aragua and Mara Salvatrucha, commonly known as MS-13.
A US official speaking anonymously to Reuters said no military action appeared imminent. Even so, the directive raised questions about whether armed forces might be used inside the United States or in another country without that government's consent. The supplied account did not disclose the order's precise wording, intended targets or operational limits.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said her government had been told that the directive was coming. She insisted it did not authorize US troops or other American institutions to operate within Mexico and said there would be no invasion. She had previously rejected Trump's offer to send US troops to help fight drug trafficking, arguing that Mexico's territory and sovereignty could not be compromised.
Legal constraints differ depending on where any action might occur. Within the United States, the 1878 Posse Comitatus Act generally prevents federal troops from performing domestic law-enforcement functions, leaving arrests and disruption operations to civilian agencies. Beyond US territory, international law restricts the use of force, with the United Nations Charter requiring states to respect other countries' territorial integrity and political independence. Legal experts cited in the report said the military's permissible role remained uncertain.
The terrorist designations themselves also carried consequences outside prospective combat. Human rights groups warned that civilians living under the control of gangs could be unintentionally affected by sanctions because criminal organizations often compel residents and businesses to make payments. Critics also questioned whether a military-centered strategy would suppress trafficking networks effectively.
The reported order arrived during broader tension between Washington and Latin American governments. Proposals for force against cartels in Mexico had circulated among US Republican politicians for years and had met strong resistance across the border. Separately, Trump had imposed high tariffs on Brazil as he sought an end to the trial of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro over an alleged coup plot. Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva called that pressure unacceptable interference.
For the moment, the directive represented an expansion of presidential authorization rather than confirmation of a specific strike or deployment. Its practical significance would depend on how agencies interpreted it, whether the administration attempted an operation, and how domestic law and the sovereignty of neighboring states constrained any military plan.
