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LATIN AMERICA ADVISOR

LATIN AMERICA ADVISOR

A daily publication Of the dialogue

September 25, 2025

What Is Behind U.S. Airstrikes in the Caribbean?

In recent weeks, the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has deployed several naval ships to the Caribbean, including the USS Jason Dunham (pictured in 2010) and has launched three airstrikes against vessels Trump has said contained drugs. // File Photo: U.S. Navy.

Q

  • Since the beginning of this month, the U.S. military has destroyed three boats in the Caribbean, killing 17 people, in strikes that President Donald Trump has said targeted drug traffickers. Less than a month before the first strike on Sept. 2, the U.S. government raised its reward for information leading to the arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro to $50 million; the U.S. State Department alleges that Maduro leads a criminal organization called the “Cartel de los Soles,” in which government and military actors coordinate with drug traffickers, an allegation Maduro has denied. What is the Cartel de los Soles, and how does it operate? To what extent is the Cartel de los Soles comparable to transnational criminal groups like Tren de Aragua? What is the U.S. government’s primary strategic objective as it deploys military force in the southern Caribbean?

A

Mike LaSusa, deputy director of content at InSight Crime and freelance journalist: “The Cartel of the Suns is not a formal group, but a term describing a system of hybrid criminal governance fueled by corruption among Venezuelan officials. President Nicolás Maduro’s government cannot pay decent salaries to security forces and key officials, so it allows them to supplement their income with rents from criminal economies. This includes taking bribes, enabling illicit activity through state infrastructure and sometimes transporting contraband themselves. The regime does not control all illegal activities; it focuses on managing who gets to profit from them. Tren de Aragua, by contrast, is a gang created to directly carry out crimes. It began in prison, extorting fellow inmates, then…”

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The Inter-American Dialogue publishes the Latin America Advisor every business day for a distinguished membership of informed corporate leaders, scholars, and government officials invested in Latin America’s development and future. The Advisor‘s highly regarded Q&A section covers questions submitted by subscribers themselves. Commentators regularly include heads of state, business leaders, diplomats, economists, analysts, and thought leaders from around the world. Many of the world’s largest and fastest-growing companies subscribe to the Advisor. To subscribe, click here. For terms and conditions, click here. For more information, contact Gene Kuleta, editor of the Advisor, at gkuleta@thedialogue.org.
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Diego Arria
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Merike Blofield
Professor of Political Science,
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Devry Boughner Vorwerk
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Joyce Chang
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J.P. Morgan

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Barbara Kotschwar
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Nicolas Mariscal
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Thomas F. McLarty III
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Beatrice Rangel
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Ernesto Revilla
Head of Latin American Economics, Citi

Gustavo Roosen
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Andrés Rozental
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Shelly Shetty
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