The US has restarted its campaign against alleged drug boats. Why now?

The US has carried out its first strike on an alleged drug-smuggling vessel in more than two months, ending the longest break in a military campaign that Washington has made a central part of its fight against so-called narco-terrorism.

Tiziano Breda, Latin America Senior Analyst at ACLED, said:

“ACLED data show that Sunday’s attack ends the longest interruption to US strikes on alleged drug-smuggling vessels since the campaign began in September 2025. Until June, strikes had been recorded every month, with the only previous notable slowdown coming in January, around the US operation to capture Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela.

“The length of this pause is particularly notable given that, the Trump administration’s counterterrorism strategy, published in May, identified ‘narco-terrorists and transnational gangs’ as one of three principal terrorist threats facing the United States. This concept was reiterated by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth at the Americas Counter Cartel Coalition summit held in Panama on 12 August, celebrating Colombia’s decision to join the initiative. 

“This is not the first interruption to the campaign, but was certainly the longest so far. It came shortly after the Pentagon’s internal watchdog opened an investigation into whether US military commanders followed proper procedures when conducting boat strikes, as well as  amid growing reports that Washington could be leaning on covert operations to attack boats suspected of carrying drugs. 

“The latest strike probably is aimed at reasserting the pivotal role that direct, kinetic airstrikes have in its counternarcotics strategy, despite doubts over its success in stemming drug trafficking flows, and the unclear reasons behind the unusually long interruption."