José Andrés Sumano, professor at El Colegio de la Frontera Norte, explains that the proposal of an extraterritorial intervention is not only politically profitable for Trump’s governmentbut a real threat.
Trump is convenient for this image of a hard hand, that great results are being given in the fight against drug trafficking. Therefore, the pieces are placed so that, at the time, we can (see) some type of intervention. It is a real risk, the threat is latent. ”
José Andrés Sumano, College of the Northern Border.
Since before Trump assumed his second term, the idea of a greater intervention caused controversy in Mexico, since the Republican asked his proposed advisors to face the cartels “with or without the consent of the Government of Mexico.”
When Trump won the elections, the Rolling Stone Magazine He revealed that the team of the then elected president considered a “soft invasion” to Mexico that included American special operations to kill cartels.
The “shadow” of the intervention is not only maintained, but it took strength. A few weeks ago, the American newspaper The New York Times published that a “secret” executive order to use armed forces in direct operations in foreign territory against drug cartels that were already declared terrorist organizations.
In Mexico, since January six Mexican cartels are already considered as such. These are the Sinaloa, Jalisco Nueva Generación, Northeast, Gulf, United cartels and the new Michoacan family.
In January, when he signed an executive order, Trump was asked if the door opened for a military intervention, to which he replied: “It is possible. Rare things have been seen.”
(Photo: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
JD Vance, vice president of the United States, said that the war against cartels seeks to prevent Mexico from becoming a “narco -state” and warned that he expects the Mexican government to do what corresponds to him or, otherwise, the United States would act.
“We hope they do it, and if they don’t, then, of course, we’ll see what to do from there,” he said last March.
Distrust of Mexico
The proposal to intervene Mexico has taken strength since February 2025, when the United States government classified as Foreign terrorist organizations and as specially designated global terrorists to the six Mexican criminal groups.
Keyla VargasProject Coordinator of the Security Analysis Collective with Democracy AC (CASEDE), explains to Political expansion that this designation as terrorists had as one of the purposes fight cartels outside the US territory.
“Categorizing criminal organizations and drug trafficking groups as terrorist organizations allows you to activate in the United States authorizations for the use of military force and specific resources in intelligence and surveillance issues that have been designed to attack terrorist organizations,” he says.
