U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has vowed that Washington will “blow up” foreign criminal organizations if necessary, marking a dramatic escalation in the Biden administration’s global counter-narcotics strategy. Speaking during a visit to Ecuador on Thursday, Rubio announced that two of the country’s most notorious gangs, Los Lobos and Los Choneros, will be formally designated as foreign terrorist organizations. The designation gives U.S. authorities wide-ranging powers to freeze assets, pursue affiliates worldwide, and carry out lethal operations against the groups.
Rubio’s rhetoric was unusually blunt for a top diplomat, underscoring Washington’s frustration with the growing role of transnational crime syndicates in fueling drug trafficking, violence, and mass migration. “Now they’re gonna help us find these people and blow them up, if that’s what it takes,” Rubio declared, adding that the United States would seek cooperation with friendly governments but would not hesitate to act unilaterally if others refuse to cooperate. His words signal a possible shift toward military-style interventions against cartels, a strategy that has long been debated inside U.S. policy circles.
The announcement came only days after a controversial U.S. military strike in the Caribbean Sea sank a vessel allegedly operated by narcotics traffickers, killing 11 people onboard. The White House claimed the operation targeted members of Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua gang, one of the most violent criminal networks in South America, but declined to provide names or details of those killed. The incident has raised difficult legal questions. Maritime law experts told BBC Verify, a partner of The InnovationTimes, that the strike may have violated international maritime law as well as human rights conventions. Neither Ecuador nor Mexico, two of Washington’s key regional partners, have explicitly agreed to allow cross-border strikes of this nature.
In a further escalation, the Pentagon accused Venezuela of attempting to interfere with counter-narcotics operations, alleging that two Venezuelan military aircraft shadowed a U.S. naval vessel in international waters. While Washington described the move as “provocative,” Caracas has not publicly responded, leaving open the possibility of a new flashpoint in already fraught U.S.-Venezuelan relations.
Ecuador’s President Daniel Noboa, who has branded his fight against gangs a “war,” welcomed Rubio’s announcement. Ecuador has rapidly emerged as a critical hub in the global cocaine trade, with authorities estimating that 70 percent of the world’s cocaine passes through its territory from Colombia and Peru before heading to lucrative markets in the United States, Europe, and Asia. Noboa has made security his top priority, pushing constitutional reforms to allow foreign military bases back into the country after the last U.S. base closed in 2009. Washington has pledged $13.5 million in security assistance and an additional $6 million in drone technology to help Ecuador counter cartel networks.
The designations of Los Lobos and Los Choneros carry not only security implications but also humanitarian and migration consequences. Violence in Ecuador has been driving tens of thousands of people north toward the United States, swelling asylum applications. Experts caution that while the terrorist label may help victims gain recognition, it could also complicate asylum cases for those coerced into paying extortion fees, since U.S. law treats such payments as potential “material support” for terrorism.
Rubio framed the announcement in sweeping terms, portraying organized crime groups as long-standing adversaries of the United States. “These groups have been waging war on us for 30 years, and no one has responded,” he said, casting the new strategy as a long-overdue counterattack. The remarks reflect a hard-line approach that blurs the line between counter-narcotics policing and counterterrorism warfare, setting the stage for further debates about legality, effectiveness, and the risk of escalating conflicts with states accused of sheltering cartels.
