Report: US deploys 4,000 more troops to waters near Latin America in cartel fight
The United States military is deploying more than 4,000 Marines and sailors to the waters around Latin America, according to a report from CNN. It’s part of President Donald Trump’s plan to use the military to combat drug cartels.
Military deployment
The Navy announced the deployment of troops assigned to the Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready Group (IWO ARG) on Friday, Aug. 15. The troops deployed on Thursday, Aug. 14, but the official notice did not say exactly where those troops would be headed.
The Navy said that among the ARG’s primary goals is to safely embark Marines ashore for a wide variety of missions.
“The IWO ARG – 22nd MEU (SOC) is an integral part of advancing our nations’ interests abroad and is a dynamic representation of our Navy’s 250 years of lethality and warfighting excellence,” Capt. Chris Farricker, commodore, Amphibious Squadron 8, said in a statement. “Our integrated Navy-Marine Corps warfighters are ready to execute the nation’s business and deliver quick and decisive combat power no matter where we are tasked in today’s complex global environment.”
The CNN report shows that, along with the troops, a nuclear-powered attack submarine, additional P-8 Poseidon reconnaissance aircraft, several destroyers and a guided-missile cruiser are also being allocated to U.S. Southern Command.
The officials CNN reportedly spoke with emphasized that this buildup is, for now, mostly a show of force.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum reacted to the news, saying Mexico’s stance “will always be for the self-determination of the peoples, not only when it comes to Mexico but all countries in Latin America and the Caribbean.”
“We can collaborate, we can coordinate. There are international areas to solve conflicts. Interventionism is not one of them,” Sheinbaum said in a statement translated from Spanish.
Targeting cartels
There has been some collaboration between the two leaders when it comes to targeting cartels. Earlier this week, Mexico extradited 26 high-ranking cartel members to the U.S.
Trump has made targeting cartels a focal point of his foreign policy.
The precursor to the new deployment was the president’s order directing the Pentagon to use military force against the cartels. That’s something Sheinbaum rejected, as she said she wants no foreign military presence on Mexican soil.
The U.S. also recently delivered a blow to the wallet of one of Mexico’s largest cartels, Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion, or CJNG. The U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned several people and companies accused of working with the cartels to defraud Americans out of hundreds of millions of dollars.
Ella Rae Greene, Editor In Chief
