US declares Tren de Aragua, other cartels are global terrorist organisations

WASHINGTON - The United States on Feb 19 designated Tren de Aragua, the Sinaloa Cartel and other drug cartels as global terrorist organisations, according to a Federal Register notice, a move that comes as President Donald Trump steps up immigration enforcement against alleged gang members in the US.

The notice issued by Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the groups pose a risk to US national security, foreign policy and economic interests.

Mr Trump, a Republican, issued an executive order after taking office on Jan 20 that called on officials to evaluate whether any criminal cartels or transnational gangs should be designated as terrorism groups. 

Mr Trump earlier this month delayed a move to impose steep tariffs on Mexico and Canada over what he said was insufficient cooperation to thwart illegal immigration and trafficking of illicit fentanyl. 

CNN reported this week that the CIA was using drones to carry out surveillance in Mexico. The covert operations had not been previously disclosed and Reuters was unable to verify the report. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said on Feb 19 that US drone flights over Mexican territory were part of a collaboration with the US, adding that there was nothing illegal about it.

During Trump's 2017-2021 presidency, he considered terrorism designations for cartels but ultimately shelved the plans. Some top US officials at the time had privately expressed misgivings that the measure could damage relations with Mexico and hinder the fight against drug trafficking. Another concern was that the designations could make it easier for migrants to win US asylum by claiming they were fleeing terrorism.

Some analysts have said the terrorism designations could expose asylum seekers who pay cartels to be smuggled to the possibility of prosecution or being barred from the US.

Designating a group as a foreign terrorist organisation, or FTO, is aimed at disrupting its finances through sanctions, including asset freezes and travel bans, on its members and associates. The scope of the designation announced on Feb 19 was not immediately clear.

Mr Andres Sumano, a security expert at El Colegio de la Frontera Norte in Tijuana, Mexico, questioned why the terrorism designation included the Sinaloa Cartel, which has fractured into small groups, and the now-diminished Gulf Cartel.

"It's worrying that the designation seems to be based on outdated literature and analysis," Mr Sumano said, adding that it raised serious concerns about the US undermining Mexican sovereignty.

The terrorism designation notice will formally be published in the Federal Register on Feb 20. A State Department spokesperson declined to comment, saying the agency was notifying key stakeholders before the designations take effect.

After taking office, Mr Trump also ordered his administration to prepare for the possibility of invoking a 1798 wartime law that could allow him to deport alleged gang members without court hearings, although he has not yet taken that step. REUTERS