The
United States confirmed on Monday that its military killed six people during
air and sea operations targeting boats allegedly involved in drug trafficking
in the eastern Pacific Ocean.
San José, Costa Rica — The announcement, made by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, increases the death toll to 76 people in 19 attacks since early September — a campaign extending across the Pacific and Caribbean Seas.
Growing
Controversy Over Legality
According
to international law experts, these operations raise serious concerns over the
legality of using lethal force against suspected traffickers without due
process. Legal analysts have argued that targeting noncombatants in
international waters violates international humanitarian law.
The
Trump administration, however, maintains that the strikes are justified under a
“formal armed conflict” designation against drug cartels. Critics contend that
such justification dangerously blurs the line between law enforcement and
warfare.
The
Scale of the Military Operation
Hegseth
confirmed that one of the targeted boats appeared stationary with an outboard
motor raised, while the second was moving at high speed. Both were attacked
without direct evidence of drug activity, according to the Pentagon’s briefing.
The
U.S.S. Gerald R. Ford, the United States’ newest and largest aircraft carrier,
is expected to arrive in the Caribbean this week. It joins a deployment of
eight warships and about 10,000 troops distributed between naval operations and
bases in Puerto Rico.
Regional
Context: Implications for Central America
Central
American governments, including Costa Rica’s Public Security Ministry, have not
issued official statements regarding the strikes. However, regional security
analysts warn that these operations could shift trafficking routes closer to
Costa Rican and Panamanian waters, where maritime patrol resources remain
limited.
Costa
Rica’s Joint Anti-Drug Intelligence Center (CICAD) has previously cautioned
that “increased U.S. military activity in the Pacific can displace criminal
logistics southward,” raising the need for enhanced maritime coordination.
Background:
A Militarized Anti-Drug Strategy
President
Trump has repeatedly linked drug smuggling to national security, asserting that
“each destroyed boat saves 25,000 American lives.” Experts counter that this
claim is statistically unfounded, noting that most U.S. overdose deaths stem
from fentanyl manufactured in Mexico, not cocaine from South America.
The
use of military force in anti-drug operations represents a significant
escalation of U.S. counter-narcotics policy, reminiscent of previous
interdiction missions in the 1980s and early 2000s, but now expanded to include
offensive strikes.
Outlook
As
the Gerald R. Ford Strike Group moves into the Caribbean, regional observers
anticipate heightened tensions and increased scrutiny from human rights
organizations and international law experts. Costa Rica’s diplomatic observers
in Washington have not yet commented on whether this shift could impact
cooperative security frameworks in the region.
By
Laura Torres | Supervised by María Quesada, Editor-in-Chief – CRNTimes
International Desk
San
José, Costa Rica — November 10, 2025, 09:45 a.m. CST (Updated)