The latest update follows two recent attacks carried out in the eastern Pacific Ocean, which are said to have caused the deaths of a further 6 people on board two vessels suspected of drug transport.
Washington – US armed forces have increased the level of aggression in counter-narcotics operations in the international waters of the eastern Pacific and the Caribbean Sea. According to a statement from the Pentagon and confirmed by the Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, the presumed death toll among drug traffickers has reached 76 since the beginning of the “accelerated campaign.” The latest update follows two recent attacks carried out in the eastern Pacific Ocean, which are said to have caused the deaths of a further 6 people on board two vessels suspected of drug transport.
The attacks, conducted by US military assets, targeted vessels identified by intelligence as vehicles for illicit trafficking along the routes connecting South and Central America to North America. Secretary Hegseth described those killed as “narco-terrorists,” equating the action against the cartels to a veritable armed war aimed at protecting national security. The administration maintains that the use of lethal force is necessary to disrupt the flow of narcotics responsible for a high number of deaths in the United States.
The adopted strategy marks a clear break from the traditional approach of the Coast Guard, which has historically favored maritime interdiction, the stopping of vessels, and the arrest of crews for subsequent indictment in federal courts. The use of drones and military means to directly strike and destroy the vessels is raising growing legal and political controversies both internationally and within the US Congress.
Legal experts and Democratic lawmakers have expressed strong doubts about the legality of the operations, arguing that the suspects on board the small vessels are to be considered civilians involved in criminal activities and not enemy combatants in a declared armed conflict against the United States. The debate focuses on crossing the line that divides the fight against organized crime from extrajudicial execution in international waters. The administration responds by referring to confidential legal opinions that frame the cartels as terrorist organizations and therefore legitimate targets.
Concurrently, the Coast Guard operation named ‘Pacific Viper’ continues to record massive seizures. The acceleration of anti-narcotics operations has led to the recovery of tens of tons of cocaine, with the interception of several dozen vessels and the arrest of crews subsequently handed over to judicial authorities. The simultaneity of the lethal military operations and the Coast Guard seizures highlights the duality of US action against drug trafficking in the Pacific Ocean.
