April 9, 2026
The negative effects of criminal networks operating in the Americas have pushed for a new security approach whose scale and scope remain unclear. The Trump administration has renewed U.S. interest in the Americas, prioritizing hemispheric security with its partners in the South. For too long, successive American administrations have remained distant from the non-traditional challenges brewing across the continent. Nevertheless, current efforts such as the Shield of the Americas have yet to demonstrate the multidimensional policy framework required to address drug and human trafficking, money laundering, violence, and illicit networks across a vast and heterogeneous region.
Before delving into what has been revealed about the new military coalition in the Americas, it is worth contextualizing it within the broader U.S. strategy. In November 2025, President Trump presented a National Security Strategy (NSS) that establishes, among the nation’s core interests, the expectation that governments in the Western Hemisphere collaborate with the United States to secure the region. Cooperation against narco-terrorists, cartels, and other transnational criminal organizations is framed as a priority, and the Shield of the Americas appears to be a new vehicle for that effort. Throughout 2025, the United States has projected its conventional military power in line with the logic of “peace through strength,” signaling that it will not hesitate to launch military offensives to achieve its foreign policy and national security goals.
In this regard, the Shield of the Americas initiative is particularly intriguing, as it departs from the traditional law-enforcement approach and instead calls for the militarization of counternarcotics and counter-criminal policies. At the summit held in early March 2026 in Doral, Florida, the messages conveyed by the administration can be interpreted as an escalation of the war on drugs into an actual war. This initiative has been launched in a context in which the implementation of the NSS appears increasingly kinetic. In 2026, the ousting of Nicolás Maduro from power in Venezuela, the elimination of Mexican drug lord Ruben Oseguera Cervantes, the bombing of Iran, and calls for the use of force against cartels and criminal organizations in the Americas illustrate the preferred statecraft tools of the current administration.
Could the Shield of the Americas be interpreted as the institutionalization of Operation Southern Spear? While the initiative appeals to a more multilateral approach, the unilateral U.S. determination to rely on the use of force as the primary mechanism to combat transnational crime indeed suggests so. The focus of Operation Southern Spear has been to leverage U.S. military power to eliminate drug boats, seize dark-fleet oil tankers, and deter criminal organizations from operating along maritime routes. Following President Trump’s remarks, U.S. allies in the region appear to be nudged toward adopting that strategy. Yet several key players are missing from the coalition, and important issues remain unaddressed.
The commitment to countering cartel criminal activity is succinct, to say the least. The four points outlined in the proclamation aim to provide military support to partner nations to dismantle criminal networks and prevent influence from foreign malign actors. During his remarks at the summit, President Trump emphasized what he described as the great success of Operation Absolute Resolve, which resulted in the extraction of Nicolás Maduro and Cilia Flores from Venezuela despite the presence of adversarial military forces.
This example could be interpreted as a hint at the types of scenarios the administration envisions when confronting organized criminal groups. Even when such groups control territory and possess advanced weaponry, they still lack the full instruments of national power that a state actor could wield. Yet an important question remains: How can this initiative deal with major criminal hubs such as Mexico and Colombia—the most notable absentees from the coalition?
Dealing with drug cartels and criminal networks requires a networked strategy capable of addressing both the incentives that drive criminal organizations and those affecting the populations that benefit from the public goods these groups provide, which ultimately incentivize them to support their activities. President Trump has described Mexico as “the epicenter of cartel violence,” yet the approach there appears to remain largely bilateral, as President Sheinbaum has acknowledged in her daily addresses to the nation. Meanwhile, Colombian President Gustavo Petro has projected a degree of disdain toward the initiative, downplaying Colombia’s exclusion while arguing that the current coalition lacks the expertise necessary to address the complexities of drug trafficking—a matter in which the South American nation has a long trajectory of experience.
The militarization of counternarcotics measures might offer short-term success and visible achievements, but it will be ineffective if it is not accompanied by long-term policies aimed at building prosperous and open societies in the region. The current U.S. paradigm favors hard power over soft power, adopting an approach to criminal networks à la Bukele that is highly popular among victimized constituencies. As the current U.S. administration looks more deeply into the Americas, academics and practitioners should follow suit and explore the broader implications of this new security posture in the region, as it will shape local and transnational communities for years to come.
Oswaldo Silva is an M.A. student at the Schar School’s International Security Program and a Student Fellow at CSPS. He holds a B.A. in International Studies from the Central University of Venezuela. His research interests include Transnational Criminal Organizations and the security challenges posed by Illiberal regimes.
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