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The United States government officially designated six **Mexican drug cartels**, the Venezuelan gang **Tren de Aragua**, and the gang **Mara Salvatrucha** (MS-13) as **foreign terrorist organizations** this Wednesday, considering them a threat to the national security of the U.S.
The U.S. Department of State announced the designation, which complies with the executive order signed by President Donald Trump on the first day of his administration, in which several drug cartels and other organizations are declared as terrorist groups operating in U.S. territory and other countries on the continent.
The U.S. designated the following cartels in that category: Sinaloa, Jalisco New Generation (CJNG), Gulf, Northeast, the New Michoacán Family, and United Cartels, in addition to the gang that emerged in Venezuela and MS-13 or MS, primarily composed of Central Americans.
The document will be published in the Federal Register and will take effect this Thursday, the Department of State stated.
The order signed by Trump on January 20 warns that the mentioned organizations represent an "unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security, foreign policy, and economy of the U.S."
"His activities, proximity, and incursions into the physical territory of the United States pose an unacceptable risk to national security," the document emphasizes.
The order emphasizes that these groups have flooded the country "with deadly drugs, violent criminals, and vicious gangs," in addition to being involved in human trafficking at the border.
A note from EFE pointed out that the government of Mexico has been opposed in recent years to the U.S. adopting this decision due to "fears that it may open the door to U.S. intervention in Mexican territory."
According to a cable from the Spanish agency, U.S. media reported the day before that CIA spy drones have been monitoring organized crime on Mexican soil with the aim of detecting fentanyl manufacturing labs.
Trump responded this Tuesday on the matter, stating that Mexico "is largely governed by cartels".
The band Tren de Aragua, which emerged in a Venezuelan prison over a decade ago and has a presence in several South American countries, had already been sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury Department in July 2024, during the administration of the Democrat Joe Biden.
Dozens of members of this gang have been arrested in recent weeks in the U.S., during immigration control operations carried out by immigration agencies and law enforcement across the country, under the new immigration policy implemented by the Trump administration. According to official reports, they have been deported to the Guantanamo Naval Base in eastern Cuba.
The criminal organization Mara Salvatrucha emerged in Los Angeles in the 1980s and established a strong presence in El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala, turning the northern triangle of Central America into one of the most violent places in the world. The MS has expanded into the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and even Europe. It was sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury in 2012, during the presidency of Barack Obama.
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