Medellín, Colombia – Latin American leaders allied to president Donald Trump met at the first “Americas Counter Cartel Conference” this Thursday, where defense secretary Pete Hesgeth urged them to cooperate in operations against drug cartels.
The meeting, held at the U.S. Southern Command headquarters in Doral, Florida, was attended by representatives from 17 Latin American and Caribbean countries including Argentina, Honduras, Ecuador, and the Dominican Republic.
The attendees signed a pact agreeing to “join a coalition to combat narco-terrorism and other shared threats,” via a “Peace through Strength” plan.
The summit follows the recent launch of a U.S. operation against drug trafficking in Ecuador, as well as the role of Washington’s intelligence in tracking down cartel boss El Mencho in Mexico.
Amidst the U.S.-Israel attacks on Iran, White House security advisor Stephen Miller reiterated the importance of continued military action in Latin America: “The cartels that operate in this hemisphere are the ISIS and the Al-Qaeda of the Western Hemisphere and should be treated just as brutally and just as ruthlessly as we treat those organizations.”
Hesgeth went on to celebrate the 1823 Monroe Doctrine which established the U.S. desire for hegemony over the Americas.
“We, like you, want borders and sovereign territories that are secure; we want unfettered access to key terrain and trade so that our nations can industrialize. […] No external power will interfere in this hemisphere,” said the secretary of war.
Trump himself has admitted to modelling his foreign policy on the nineteenth century idea, referring to the “Donroe Doctrine” after the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro in January.
His second term in office has seen increased military action across Latin America. Since last September, at least 148 people have been killed in U.S. strikes on boats suspected of smuggling drugs in the waters surrounding Latin America and the Caribbean.
At the meeting, many delegations were keen to express their shared views on the necessity of hardline policies against organized crime. Salvadoran Minister of Defense, René Merino Monroy, defended his country’s ‘mano dura’ (iron fist) policy of mass incarceration which has dramatically reduced homicide but also been denounced by human rights organizations.
“Against the opinions of international groups the president [Nayib Bukele] used the armed forces to fight the threat of the gangs that prevailed at the time,” he said.
“The state cannot be weaker than crime […] we are glad that you are reinstating the Monroe Doctrine.”
Many Latin American leaders who have vocalized criticism towards Trump’s policies, such as Colombia’s Gustavo Petro and Mexico’s Claudia Sheinbaum, were absent.
Feature image: Attendees at the conference.
Image source: Pete Hesgeth via X
