Colombia joins US-led coalition against cartels, Hegseth announces

Colombia has officially joined the US-led coalition against cartels in the Americas, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has said.

In a post on X, he described it as a new chapter in defense cooperation between the United States and Colombia, Caliber.Az reports.

“Colombia is officially joining the Americas Counter Cartel Coalition (A3C). I met with Minister of Defense Mora in Panama City today as we launched a new chapter in U.S.-Colombia defense cooperation,” he wrote.

Colombia is officially joining the Americas Counter Cartel Coalition (A3C).

I met with Minister of Defense Mora (@mindefensa) in Panama City today as we launched a new chapter in U.S.-Colombia defense cooperation. pic.twitter.com/19Rb4WMMi9

— Secretary of War Pete Hegseth (@SecWar) August 12, 2026

Earlier, Hegseth stated that Colombia’s newly inaugurated President Abelardo de la Espriella has asked Washington to participate in joint military operations against drug cartels and “narco-terrorism.”

He announced that Colombia would join the US-led “Shield of the Americas” initiative as its 19th member.

The initiative was launched following a March summit involving US President Donald Trump and Latin American governments seeking greater cooperation in the fight against drug trafficking organisations. Colombia’s then-president, Gustavo Petro, was not invited to the summit.

“Through the newly inaugurated president, as our president likes to say, President El Tigre, Colombia has already requested that the Department of War join Colombia in its fight against narco-terrorism, authorizing joint military operations to destroy terrorists and terror networks,” Hegseth noted.

The government of de la Espriella, who took office last week and is known as “The Tiger” or “El Tigre”, did not immediately respond to Hegseth’s remarks. The conservative president had previously remarked that his administration would participate in the US initiative.

During the meeting, Hegseth also called on Latin American governments to reject the International Criminal Court (ICC). The appeal comes as the Trump administration has conducted military strikes against suspected drug traffickers in the region, prompting questions over the legal basis for such operations.

Hegseth maintained that the US actions “are entirely legal under international humanitarian law.”

It remains unclear from his comments what steps, if any, the ICC has taken that could interfere with US operations in the region.

Hegseth urged representatives from nearly 20 countries attending the meeting to withdraw their support for the ICC and reject what he described as the court’s attempts to undermine the “sovereignty” of national governments and judicial systems.

The Trump administration has been pursuing efforts to weaken the international court following its issuance of arrest warrants for senior Israeli officials over the war in Gaza, as well as investigations involving US personnel in Afghanistan.

By Bakhtiyar Abbasov