Overview

• Reports from the New York Times and Wall Street Journal say President Trump secretly directed the Pentagon to develop military options against drug cartels designated as terrorist organizations.
• The U.S. embassy in Mexico announced that Washington intends to use “all means at its disposal” to fight trafficking without explicitly committing to armed intervention.
• Mexico’s Foreign Ministry and President Claudia Sheinbaum officially rejected any participation of U.S. military forces on Mexican territory.
• The administration has placed cartels on a terrorist list and threatened substantial tariffs to pressure Mexico over fentanyl smuggling and immigration enforcement.
• Despite the diplomatic impasse, U.S. and Mexican authorities continue intelligence-sharing and coordinate nonmilitary efforts against transnational cartels.