The U.S. has formally designated the Venezuela-based criminal group known as the Cartel de los Soles as a foreign terrorist organisation (FTO), according to a notice published on Monday (24 November) in the U.S. Federal Register.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio officially signed the designation, saying, “I hereby designate the aforementioned organisation and its respective aliases as a Foreign Terrorist Organization.”
While Rubio announced the move earlier this month, it officially took effect on Monday.
According to the U.S. State Department, the Cartel de los Soles, along with other designated FTOs including Tren de Aragua and Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel, are responsible for terrorist violence across the Americas and for trafficking illicit drugs into the U.S. and Europe.
The Venezuelan government has strongly rejected the designation.
Foreign Minister Yvan Gil described the move as a “ridiculous fabrication” and said Caracas “categorically, firmly and absolutely rejects” the claim that the cartel exists. Gil accused Washington of attempting to justify “an illegitimate and illegal intervention against Venezuela.”
Tensions between the two countries have risen amid ongoing U.S. military operations in Latin America. Reports indicate that the U.S. has deployed Marines, warships, fighter and bomber jets, submarines, and drones in the region, sparking speculation about a possible military confrontation.
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has said that Venezuela is open to direct dialogue, with the U.S. President Trump indicating on Friday that he would hold talks with Maduro in the near future.
Expanding cross-border commerce and strengthening regional trade corridors topped the agenda in Baku on Tuesday (24 February), as senior lawmakers fro...
Ukraine signalled its readiness for fast-track European Union membership in Kyiv on Tuesday (24 February), as European leaders pledged continued polit...
U.S. military forces have seized a sanctioned oil tanker in the Indian Ocean after tracking it from Caribbean waters, the Pentagon said on Tuesday (24...
Four years into Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the war can be measured not only in lives and territory, but in money. In Part One, the war’s cost w...
The Taliban in Kabul has rejected Russian claims that more than 23,000 militants from around 20 international terror groups are currently operating wi...
Ukraine signalled its readiness for fast-track European Union membership in Kyiv on Tuesday (24 February), as European leaders pledged continued political and financial backing and insisted Russia would gain nothing at the negotiating table.
Four years into Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the war can be measured not only in lives and territory, but in money. In Part One, the war’s cost was measured in casualties and kilometres. In Part Two, it is measured in billions of dollars.
The Taliban in Kabul has rejected Russian claims that more than 23,000 militants from around 20 international terror groups are currently operating within Afghanistan.
Kazakhstan says it has allocated $2.2 million to strengthen scientific monitoring of the Caspian Sea amid growing concern over falling water levels, biodiversity loss and rising industrial pressure on the world’s largest inland body of water.
Italy said a fond farewell to the Winter Olympics on Sunday with an open-air ceremony in the ancient Verona Arena that celebrated art and sporting achievement at a Games lauded as a model for how to stage such events.
The United States and Iran will hold a new round of nuclear negotiations in Geneva on Thursday as part of renewed diplomatic efforts to reach a potential agreement, Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi announced on Sunday.
Further Iran-U.S. nuclear talks are scheduled in Geneva on Thursday (26 February) as diplomacy resumes over Tehran’s nuclear programme following earlier mediation efforts. But will the talks move Iran-U.S. negotiations closer to a deal, and what should be expected from the meeting?
Mexican authorities said on Sunday that Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as El Mencho and head of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), was killed during a military operation in the western state of Jalisco.
The European Parliament’s trade chief has urged a temporary suspension of the EU–U.S. trade agreement approval, citing “tariff chaos” following President Donald Trump’s new 15% tariffs and a U.S. Supreme Court ruling invalidating his previous global tariff programme.
Ukraine signalled its readiness for fast-track European Union membership in Kyiv on Tuesday (24 February), as European leaders pledged continued political and financial backing and insisted Russia would gain nothing at the negotiating table.
U.S. military forces have seized a sanctioned oil tanker in the Indian Ocean after tracking it from Caribbean waters, the Pentagon said on Tuesday (24 February), adding that it was the third such operation.
Four years into Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the war can be measured not only in lives and territory, but in money. In Part One, the war’s cost was measured in casualties and kilometres. In Part Two, it is measured in billions of dollars.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Tuesday (24 February) urged Ukraine’s allies to maintain their backing as the war with Russia entered its fourth year, with divisions among European partners overshadowing anniversary commemorations.
Seven people were killed after gunmen ambushed a police patrol in Kohat, a district in Pakistan’s north-west near the Afghan border, on Tuesday, in an attack that comes amid rising militant violence and heightened tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan.
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