Trump rallies Latin American allies against drug cartels at UNGA

September 23, 2026 at 10:34 AM2 min

This digest was compiled by AI from multiple sources — links to the originals are below.

President Donald Trump urged members of the Shield of the Americas coalition to designate 24 criminal organizations as narco-terrorists and impose sanctions during a meeting in New York City on Tuesday. The coalition's 15 governments later issued a joint statement pledging asset freezes and visa restrictions against the groups. The meeting took place on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.

Key Facts

Trump asked all Shield of the Americas nations to designate 24 criminal organizations as narco-terrorists and apply sanctions.
The coalition's 15 governments issued a joint statement pledging asset freezes and visa restrictions on members and supporters of the groups.
The list includes MS-13, Tren de Aragua, major Mexican cartels, Colombia's National Liberation Army, Brazil's Primeiro Comando da Capital and Comando Vermelho, and Peru's Shining Path.
Colombia and Peru joined the coalition after Trump-aligned presidents took office in recent months; Brazil and Mexico have not joined.

Coalition Meeting

The meeting took place on the sidelines of the annual United Nations General Assembly in New York City. Trump urged member countries to join the US in targeting 24 criminal organisations, which he earlier described as the 'ISIS of the Western Hemisphere'. He asked all nations in the Shield of the Americas to formally designate narco-terrorists as common threats to stability and apply crushing sanctions against all of the groups. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who also attended, praised 'the emergence of strong leaders who are committed to the challenge of taking on transnational terrorism'.

Targeted Groups

At the top of the list are Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) and Tren de Aragua, both declared terrorist organisations by Washington. The list also includes major Mexican cartels, Colombian armed groups such as the National Liberation Army, Brazil's Primeiro Comando da Capital and Comando Vermelho groups, and Peru's Shining Path. The coalition's 15 governments later issued a joint statement saying they intended to impose asset freezes and visa restrictions on members and supporters of the groups and to pursue criminal charges against them.

Regional Response

Al Jazeera's Alessandro Rampietti, reporting from Bogota, Colombia, said the statement was largely symbolic for now, because each country must follow its own legal procedures. In Colombia, it will require a law to pass in Congress; the government has asked Congress to move forward in drafting such a law. The coalition is made up of governments closely aligned with Trump, including Argentina, Ecuador and El Salvador. Colombia and Peru joined after Trump-aligned presidents took office in recent months; Brazil and Mexico have not joined.