US President Donald Trump attends a briefing on Enhanced Narcotics Operations on the U.S. Southern Command in Doral, Florida, on July 10, 2020.
Saul Loeb | Afp | Getty Photos
The Pentagon introduced on Friday it’s establishing a brand new counter-narcotics joint process power overseeing operations in Latin America, a transfer aimed to strengthen already intensifying navy operations which have raised questions amongst authorized consultants.
Protection Secretary Pete Hegseth mentioned the duty power aimed “to crush the cartels, cease the poison, and preserve America protected.”
“The message is obvious: if you happen to site visitors medicine towards our shores, we are going to cease you chilly,” Hegseth mentioned on X.
Hanging suspected drug boats
To date, the missions have centered totally on placing suspected drug boats within the waters of the Caribbean. The U.S. navy has blown up no less than 4 to this point, killing 21 folks.
The U.S. navy’s Southern Command, which oversees U.S. operations in Latin America, mentioned the brand new process power could be led by II Marine Expeditionary Drive, a muscular unit able to fast abroad operations, which relies at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina.
The U.S. navy’s Southern Command mentioned the II MEF, because it’s recognized in navy parlance, would “synchronize and increase counter-narcotics efforts throughout the Western Hemisphere.”
“By forming a (process power) round II MEF headquarters, we improve our means to detect, disrupt, and dismantle illicit trafficking networks sooner and at larger depth – along with our U.S. and partner-nation counterparts,” Admiral Alvin Holsey, who leads Southern Command, mentioned in an announcement.
It was unclear if the creation of the duty power granted the U.S. troops in Latin America any further authorities as President Donald Trump mulls doubtlessly placing suspected drug trafficking websites inside Venezuela.
In an announcement, Marine Lieutenant Normal Calvert Value, who leads the II MEF and can head the duty power, prompt the main target was nonetheless operations at sea. “That is principally a maritime effort, and our staff will leverage maritime patrols, aerial surveillance, precision interdictions, and intelligence sharing to counter illicit site visitors, uphold the rule of legislation, and in the end higher shield weak communities right here at residence,” Value mentioned.
Questions over strikes
The assaults have alarmed Democratic lawmakers and raised questions amongst some authorized consultants, who see Trump testing the bounds of the legislation as he expands the scope of presidential energy.
The administration has not detailed what proof it has in opposition to the vessels or people, has not mentioned what kind of munitions or platforms had been used within the strikes and even what amount of medication the vessels had been allegedly carrying.
Some former navy legal professionals say the authorized explanations given by the Trump administration for killing suspected drug traffickers at sea as a substitute of apprehending them fail to fulfill necessities underneath the legislation of battle, which requires a number of standards to be met earlier than taking deadly motion – together with first utilizing non-lethal means like firing warning photographs.
Authorized consultants have additionally questioned why the U.S. navy is finishing up the strikes as a substitute of the Coast Guard, which is the principle U.S. maritime legislation enforcement company.
Final week, the Pentagon disclosed to Congress in a notification reviewed by Reuters that Trump has decided the US is engaged in “a non-international armed battle.”
The doc aimed to clarify the Trump administration’s authorized rationale for unleashing U.S. navy power within the Caribbean.