Cartel 'Headed By Maduro' Added To US Terrorist List
Newsweek19 hrs
US Treasury Sanctions Cartel Allegedly Headed by Venezuela's Maduro
Above: Venezuela's Nicolás Maduro greets Diosdado Cabello during a rally in Caracas on Feb. 4, 2025. Image copyright: Pedro Mattey/AFP/Getty Images
The Spin
Anti-Maduro narrative
This is decision is long overdue: The Cartel de los Soles should have been sanctioned even before it started supporting Tren de Aragua and the Sinaloa Cartel due to its partnership with Colombia's FARC dissidents, which flood the U.S. with cocaine. And given that the cartel is an arm of the Maduro regime, it's time that the U.S. also designates Venezuela a state sponsor of terrorism.
Pro-Maduro narrative
There is no reliable evidence that Nicolás Maduro and other high-ranking officials are involved with the Cartel de los Soles — nor is there substantiated proof of its engagement in illegal activities or even its very existence. Even if such a drug trafficking network exists in Venezuela, it's a matter of fact that the U.S. has been exaggerating its scale and structure to justify military interventions and economic sanctions against the nation.