Overview
- President Donald Trump said he would be "proud" to authorize attacks on cartel targets in Mexico and claimed U.S. intelligence knows traffickers' routes and addresses.
- Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum ruled out allowing foreign troops, stressing cooperation limited to information-sharing and insisting Mexico will not request intervention.
- Secretary of State Marco Rubio and the U.S. Embassy clarified Washington will not take unilateral military action in Mexico and could only assist if Mexico explicitly asks.
- The U.S. maintains a heightened regional posture under Operation Lanza del Sur, including the USS Gerald R. Ford carrier group, after a series of maritime strikes that reports say have killed more than 70 people.
- Trump kept military options open on Venezuela and signaled willingness to talk with Nicolás Maduro as the U.S. moves to designate the Cartel de los Soles and offers a $50 million reward for Maduro.