'Americas Counter Cartel Coalition': Inside the US strategy to combat narco terror, confront China, other foes

FIRST ON FOX: The United States is advancing a sweeping hemispheric information strategy aimed astatine dismantling transnational criminal organizations and countering nan increasing footprint of geopolitical rivals crossed Latin America, according to Joseph M. Humire, acting adjunct caput of warfare for homeland defense and Americas information affairs.

At nan halfway of this effort is nan "Shield of nan Americas," a multi-layered inaugural designed to merge military, intelligence, and rule enforcement capabilities crossed partner nations successful nan Western Hemisphere.

"Shield of nan Americas is simply a statesmanlike framing to shape an confederation successful nan Western Hemisphere. The Americas Counter Cartel Coalition fits wrong it, but it's not exclusive to it. We now person 18 members successful nan coalition. And successful nan Shield, location are 13 countries," Humire said.

CARTELS FEAR US RETALIATION AS TRUMP-ERA PRESSURE RESHAPES STRATEGY: 'THEY FEAR THE UNITED STATES'

US President Donald Trump speaks during nan "Shield of nan Americas" Summit astatine Trump National Doral successful Miami, Florida, March 7, 2026.  (SAUL LOEB / AFP via Getty Images)

"The proclamation that President Trump signed connected March 7, was centered astir nan coalition, and nan conjugation is centered astir having partner nations successful Latin America commencement looking astatine partner-led, deterrence-focused operations against cartel infrastructure and targets wrong their sovereign territory, some connected onshore and successful nan maritime territory."

Humire said, "In nan past, we would supply training, capacity building and a bunch of different things to our partners truthful that they could spell aft nan cartels. What is different successful this management is we are now accompanying our partners to spell aft nan shared threats. In immoderate cases, we've already gotten support to do that, for illustration successful Ecuador, wherever we person support from President Daniel Noboa to not conscionable counsel and assistance his subject arsenic they prosecute successful counter-narcotic violent operations, but besides travel his subject forces erstwhile they prosecute successful those operations."

A worker stands defender by a charred conveyance aft it was group connected occurrence successful Cointzio, Michoacán state, Mexico, Sunday, Feb. 22, 2026, aft nan decease of nan leader of nan Jalisco New Generation Cartel, Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, known arsenic "El Mencho." (AP Photo/Armando Solis) (AP Photo/Armando Solis)

Humire says, "The 2nd quality to erstwhile administrations is that we are leaning successful connected deterrence-focused operations, which intends we are encouraging our partners to usage difficult powerfulness to nonstop a awesome to nan cartels to complement interdiction. We are still seizing narcotics. We're still arresting awesome cartel members. We are besides now destroying cartel infrastructure and, successful immoderate cases, taking retired cartel members. That's thing that is new."

Mexico

"Mexico is not a personnel of nan coalition. We are encouraged by Mexico's caller cognition against El Mencho. That was an violative cognition against a high-value individual tied to a awesome cartel. We look guardant to Mexico becoming a personnel successful nan future. Our relationship pinch Mexico is very beardown military-wise. We person done a batch of training and capacity building pinch Mexico. But arsenic of today, we still don't person U.S. forces accompanying Mexico wrong nan sovereign territory of nan country," he said.

"Mexico, for illustration galore countries, saw what happened successful Venezuela and now understand that there's a partner of penchant wrong nan Western Hemisphere and successful nan world, which is nan United States, not China, Russia aliases Iran."

Pentagon actions nether this model see nan deployment of further surveillance assets, enhanced maritime patrol operations, and nan integration of cyber capabilities to way and disrupt illicit networks. It has besides prioritized capacity-building efforts to fortify partner nations’ expertise to prolong semipermanent counter-cartel operations.

CRUZ WARNED MEXICO OFFICIALS 'PRESIDENT TRUMP WAS GOING TO' ACT IF THEY DIDN'T FIGHT CARTELS

President Donald Trump, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney clasp their countries' cards during nan tie for nan 2026 shot World Cup astatine nan Kennedy Center successful Washington connected Dec. 5, 2025. (Stephanie Scarbrough, Pool/AP Photo)

Humire continued, "This is simply a historical effort to put nan Western Hemisphere arsenic a apical location privilege for U.S. nationalist security successful ways we person ne'er done before. President Trump has made a monumental displacement successful U.S. overseas argumentation and nationalist security."

Beyond cartel activity, nan inaugural reflects increasing interest complete nan power of China, russia and Iran successful nan region.

Expanding Chinese infrastructure investments pinch dual-use potential, Iranian-linked networks tied to illicit finance and proxy activities and Russian disinformation campaigns are cardinal threats to location stability.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio (Center-R) meets pinch Paraguay's Foreign Minister Ruben Ramirez Lezcano (Center-L) astatine nan State Department successful Washington, DC connected Dec. 15, 2025 as, Paraguay's Minister of Defense General Óscar Luís González Cañete (L) and Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Americas Security Affairs Joseph Humire (R) look on.  (Jim Watson/ AFP via Getty Images)

To antagonistic these efforts, nan Pentagon has accrued intelligence practice pinch allied governments, expanded associated cybersecurity initiatives, and supported efforts to unafraid captious infrastructure from overseas power aliases exploitation. Military-to-military engagements person besides been scaled up to reenforce alignment pinch U.S. strategical priorities.

Panama

"Since Secretary Hegseth and Secretary Rubio went to Panama past year, China has had importantly little power wrong that country. They mislaid entree to nan ports and are nary longer advancing their investments" Humire said.

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Panama Canal Authority Administrator Ricaurte Vasquez, and Commander of nan U.S. Southern Command Adm. Alvin Holsey airs during a circuit of nan Miraflores locks, successful Panama City, Panama April 8, 2025.  (Aris Martinez/Reuters)

"China besides had a batch of power complete nan Panamanian government. That power is nary more. Panama has withdrawn from nan Belt and Road Initiative, becoming nan first state successful Latin America to do so. From nan Department of War, we person collaborated pinch Panama to build up an enduring beingness connected nan Panama Canal which includes a jungle operations schoolhouse connected nan Atlantic side, and a associated information cognition group connected nan Pacific side. This is each to beforehand information of nan Panama Canal."

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Venezuela

Humire continued, "The stabilization efforts successful Venezuela are going well. Despite Maduro's very adjacent narration pinch Iran, China and Russia, this was not capable to take sides him. In nan aftermath of Operation Absolute Resolve, we person seen hostility among these different outer actors, because while they had levels of cooperation, they don't person nan aforesaid nonstop interests."

Captured Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, look pinch their attorneys Barry Pollack and Mark Donnelly astatine their arraignment successful a national tribunal successful New York City connected Monday, Jan. 5, 2026. (Jane Rosenberg)

"This is evidenced by nan truth that before, during and aft Operation Absolute Resolve, neither Russia, China, aliases Iran, aliases moreover Cuba for that matter, were capable to do thing to support Nicolas Maduro successful power. They mightiness person sent immoderate instrumentality and armament, but that didn't take sides Maduro from that operation, and nan Cuban information that was pinch him wasn't capable to take sides him. Russia, China, Iran aliases Cuba could not extremity a very successful U.S. subject action successful support of U.S. rule enforcement."

"The connection to each nan countries successful Latin America, and frankly nan world, is that they request to deliberation doubly erstwhile they partner pinch Russia, China aliases Iran because that business does not nutrient results," Humire said.

Cuba

As portion of its broader hemispheric strategy, nan management is besides recalibrating its policy toward Cuba, viewing nan land arsenic a persistent information interest owed to its ties pinch U.S. adversaries.

Protesters stitchery extracurricular a Communist Party office successful Morón, Cuba, arsenic a occurrence burns successful nan thoroughfare during overnight unrest. Video obtained by Fox News Digital appeared to show demonstrators attempting to group occurrence to nan building amid protests linked to wide blackouts. (Reuters)

"The White House is starring conversations pinch Cuba successful nan aftermath of Venezuela. Cuba was reliant connected subsidized lipid from Venezuela, successful speech for information services. But those information services didn't do overmuch for Venezuela erstwhile it mattered, truthful I judge location is simply a spot of a clash betwixt nan Cuban and Venezuelan governments" he said.

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"The Western Hemisphere is our neighborhood; it is intricately tied to U.S. homeland defense. Hemispheric defense is and ever has been a cardinal portion of U.S. homeland defense. Acknowledging this is why nan Western Hemisphere is now a apical privilege for nan Trump management and particularly for nan Department of War, arsenic reflected by charismatic argumentation successful nan 2025 National Security Strategy and 2026 National Defense Strategy." Humire told Fox News Digital.