Hegseth Announces New Operation Against Drug Cartels As Tensions Flare With Venezuela

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth announced the launch of “Operation Southern Spear” on Thursday, marking a major escalation in the Trump administration’s battle against drug cartels operating in the Western Hemisphere. The move comes amid rising tensions with Venezuela and sharp criticism from European allies over recent U.S. military strikes targeting narcotics trafficking routes.

Hegseth unveiled the new operation in a statement posted to X, describing it as a mission directed by President Donald Trump to protect American sovereignty and combat the deadly drug crisis plaguing the nation. While the announcement did not clarify whether Southern Spear is a new phase of existing operations or a standalone expansion, the language signaled a more aggressive posture in the region.

“Led by Joint Task Force Southern Spear and U.S. Southern Command, this mission defends our Homeland, removes narco-terrorists from our Hemisphere, and secures our Homeland from the drugs that are killing our people,” Hegseth wrote. “The Western Hemisphere is America’s neighborhood – and we will protect it.”

The declaration follows a dramatic military standoff with Venezuela. Earlier this week, the Maduro regime ordered a “massive mobilization” of its armed forces, staging military exercises involving roughly 200,000 soldiers. Venezuela’s Defense Minister, Vladimir Padrino López, said the drills were a response to an “imperialist threat” from the United States, after U.S. Navy forces, including the USS Gerald R. Ford—the most advanced aircraft carrier in the world—entered the Caribbean.

The Trump administration has intensified maritime operations in both the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean in recent weeks, targeting cartel submarines and speedboats ferrying drugs like fentanyl and cocaine into the United States. According to U.S. military officials, at least 20 vessels linked to drug trafficking have already been destroyed as part of the campaign.

International backlash has followed. European officials, including representatives from France and the UK, have accused the United States of breaching international law with what they see as extrajudicial military actions in international waters. Some nations have even halted intelligence-sharing with Washington over concerns of being implicated in the strikes.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio fired back at those criticisms on Wednesday. Speaking to reporters at a G-7 summit, Rubio said, “I do find it interesting that all these countries want us to send and supply, for example, nuclear-capable Tomahawk missiles to defend Europe, but when the United States positions aircraft carriers in our hemisphere, where we live, somehow that’s a problem?”

Rubio emphasized that the Trump administration is fully committed to defending the American people against both foreign and domestic threats. “This president has made very clear his job is to protect the United States from threats against the United States, and that is what he is doing in this operation,” he said.

With “Operation Southern Spear” now formally underway, the U.S. appears poised to further expand its footprint in the region and ramp up efforts to dismantle the networks fueling America’s fentanyl crisis—even if it means straining alliances abroad.