President Donald Trump said he would consider launching strikes in Mexico to stop drug traffickers from entering the United States, a major escalation in an already controversial effort to combat the international transportation of illegal drugs.
“Would I launch strikes in Mexico to stop drugs? It’s OK with me. Whatever we have to do to stop drugs,” Trump told reporters Monday in the Oval Office during an event to discuss expedited visas for World Cup ticketholders.
“I’m not happy with Mexico,” Trump said.
The president has taken aggressive steps he said are vital to stop drugs from getting into the U.S., which he has framed as a war. The military has struck 21 boats that the administration accuses of drug smuggling, killing more than 80 people without presenting public evidence of a crime or getting an authorization of war from Congress.
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Attacks in Mexico would be unprecedented, as the two countries have maintained significant diplomatic and economic ties for over a century and are set to cohost the World Cup with Canada. Trump declined to answer whether he would tell Mexican authorities before launching a strike.
He did not address whether he would seek congressional approval. Some senators have tried to check the president’s powers on boat strikes and potential strikes within Venezuela but did not receive sufficient support.
“Every boat we knock out, we save 25,000 American lives,” Trump said. Trump did not provide evidence or further explanation for the number.
Trump additionally said that he would be “proud” to strike drug production facilities in Colombia and that he would potentially warn Congress before it happened.
Trump also said recently that he was open to discussions with Venezuelan President and dictator Nicolás Maduro, who the administration claims is a driving force behind the country’s illegal drug trade. It was the first possible offramp since the U.S. began a massive military buildup in the region.
The USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group entered the Caribbean Sea on Sunday, with more than 4,000 sailors on board, putting the tally at more than a dozen American warships in the region. Usually, the U.S. stations only one or two ships in the Caribbean Sea.
Trump said last week that he had “made up his mind” on what to do in Venezuela, but did not provide specifics.
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