The White House claims to have solid arguments to combat cartels

The White House told Congress that the United States was now engaged in an “armed conflict” with drug traffickers operating in Latin America-a statement that sounded for some as a formal war declaration.

Last week, a note sent to legislators said that the United States was engaged in a “non-international armed conflict” with drug traffickers classified as “illegal fighters”. This follows the previous designation by President Donald Trump of several cartels as foreign terrorist organizations and four American strikes against boats allegedly carrying drugs near Venezuelan waters, who killed 21 people in the month, according to US officials.

The White House affirms that these operations are part of a broader national security campaign aimed at putting an end to what it calls a direct threat against the Americans – and insists that the legal arguments of the administration in this sense are “foolproof”.

“The President acted in accordance with the law of armed conflicts to protect our country from those who try to introduce a deadly poison on our coasts, and he keeps his promise to tackle cartels and eliminate these national security threats by murdering more Americans,” said assistant press secretary Anna Kelly in a statement.

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President Donald Trump directed a deadly strike against a boat suspected of drug trafficking, the Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said on Friday. (Secwar/x)

An official of the White House stressed that the report “does not transmit any new information”, stressing that he followed a strike of September 15 against a terrorist organization designated after previous operations in the Caribbean.

Immediately after the publication of the report, the Ministry of War led its fourth strike against alleged traffickers in the Caribbean, killing four people in international waters off the coast of Venezuela.

“A boat loaded with enough drugs to kill 25 to 50 thousand people was prevented early this morning, off the coast of Venezuela, from entering US territory,” wrote Trump on Truth Social.

From the application of the law to the paradigm of war time

The new memo brings American operations against the drug cards of a law enforcement model – arrests and prosecution – to a war paradigm which authorizes the use of deadly force and detention without trial. Like the war against terrorism that followed on September 11, the administration maintains that drug cartels are “illegal fighters” and can be targeted militarily rather than treated as criminals.

Administration officials argue that this approach is legally justified, while criticisms warn that it extends the presidential authority.

Trump approves military action against Latin American cartels classified as terrorist organizations

Legal and constitutional issues

Under article II of the Constitution, the presidents can use strength to repel sudden attacks. The Trump administration claims that drugs that have killed more than 100,000 Americans per year in recent years are an urgent threat to national security, which gives the authorization to make these strikes.

But lawyers specializing in national security say that this authority is limited.

“It is far from authorizing a series of current strikes”, wrote Georgetown’s law professor Marty Lederman, who argued that such a campaign would be equivalent to “a war in the constitutional sense of the term” and would therefore require the approval of the congress.

Video sequences show a ship shortly before its destruction off Venezuela on September 2, 2025. (@realdonaldtrump via social social)

The lawyer responsible for national security, Irina Tsukerman, said that the formulation adopted by the administration was a sign of an prolonged campaign and an effort aimed at asserting the unilateral presidential authority.

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“He says he doesn’t even need to go to Congress, because he essentially takes measures against these illegal fighters, and that it will be a long-term operation, just as with the war against terrorism,” she said.

She also noted that, unlike Al-Qaeda or IS, there is no authorization for the use of military force for cartels.

“The president has only the power to continue strikes for 60 days,” she added. “Beyond that, the congress must approve.” This means that the 60 -day period for war powers is already underway – it started with the first strike on September 2. Unless the congress agrees, this power expires in early November.

So far, Democratic leaders have questioned the scope of strikes but have not taken any measures to block them. Senator Chris Murphy, Democrat of Connecticut, said that Trump’s advisers pushed him towards war.

“The uncertain and over-compulsory bellicists around Trump-who convinced him to change the name of the Ministry of Defense-now seem to try to encourage Venezuela to a war that nobody wants,” he wrote on X last month.

Regional strategy and Venezuela

Pedro Garmetia, Managing Director of Geopolitical Risk Company The Pinafore Group and former representative of the interim government of Venezuela to the organization of American states, the international organization of nations of the western hemisphere,, said the strikes should be considered less as isolated operations to combat drugs than as part of a wider regional message.

“For years, the Venezuelan regime has used its links with drug trafficking organizations and international terrorist groups like Hezbollah to support and destabilize its rivals,” said Garmetia. “You have to understand this as an extension of the Bush doctrine. It allows Trump to take control of the Caribbean, an important drug road, while sending messages to Iran, China and Russia, which all have an imprint in Venezuela.”

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Garmetia argued that by treating cartels as non -state combatants, the administration also points out that the Nicolas Maduro regime is not a legitimate government, but a “zombie monster” supported by foreign sponsors and criminal companies.

“Cartels and gang chiefs are members of the government. They are completely linked,” he said. “The message here is addressed more to the Venezuelan authorities: they are also legitimate targets. If I were Minister of the government of Maduro, or even Maduro, this declaration would make me very afraid.”

Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores are on board a military vehicle during independence day celebrations in Caracas on July 5, 2025. (Juan Barto/AFP via Getty Images)

He added that Venezuela does not have the ability to retaliate against overwhelming American force. “They do not have the capacity to intercept an F-35 or to equal the firepower already present in the Caribbean,” said Gartendia.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro, confronted with an electoral year, could adopt an “anti-imperialist” posture in the face of American climbing, but it is unlikely that he will provide material support to Maduro, while Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula Da Silva could try to discourage strikes but should not openly defend Caracas.

“The Maduro regime is essentially a drug cartel that has taken hold of an entire country,” said Garmetia. “I don’t see Lula put my hand on the fire to save him.”

Climbing tensions

Trump also decided to cut the diplomatic tracks with Caracas, ordering his special envoy, Richard Grenell, to suspend all his awareness efforts in Venezuela, the government said. New York Times reported. This change marks a new turning point towards a hard position: now, rather than negotiating, the White House redoubles military influence as the main tool.

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With Friday’s strike, 21 people in total were reportedly killed in four operations in the last month. The United States has also repositioned 10 F-35 aircraft in Porto Rico for missions to combat drugs, and the Pentagon is studying striking options on Venezuelan territory.

Maduro responded this week by declaring the state of emergency in the face of what he described as an American “assault”. Vice-president Delcy Rodriguez said Maduro had signed a decree going to “special powers” to act in defense if the United States “dared to attack our homeland”.

On the legal level, the White House affirms that the authority of the president currently covers limited strikes. But unless the congress approves it before November, the operation could trigger a new confrontation between the war powers.