Trump Labels Fentanyl “Weapon of Mass Destruction,” Authorizing Strikes Against Cartels

President Donald Trump has officially designated fentanyl as a “weapon of mass destruction,” granting the Drug Enforcement Administration expanded authority to combat the drug, according to agency Administrator Terry Cole.

Cole stated that the classification opens “the aperture to treat this continuous poison that’s coming to the United States as a weapon of mass destruction.” The order instructs federal agencies including the attorney general, State Department, and Department of Defense to collaborate on addressing illicit fentanyl trafficking.

The unprecedented designation signals Trump’s intent to reframe fentanyl from a public health issue into a national security threat comparable to chemical warfare. This move empowers intelligence agencies to deploy tools typically reserved for countering weapons proliferation against drug traffickers.

Speaking at a White House event honoring border service members, Trump declared: “We’re formally classifying fentanyl as a weapon of mass destruction, which is what it is.” He also warned that “they’re trying to drug out our country.”

The administration’s order states that illicit fentanyl is “closer to a chemical weapon than a narcotic.” This designation has enabled military action against drug cartels designated as foreign terrorist organizations, with the Pentagon conducting 28 strikes in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean since early September—killing at least 104 people.

Trump has threatened targeted land strikes in Venezuela, Colombia, and Mexico to combat drug trafficking. In a recent strategy document, he outlined an effort to reassert U.S. dominance in the Western Hemisphere.

Cole emphasized that Mexican cartels “never sleep,” adding: “Right now, they are plotting, they are manufacturing, they are getting ready to distribute and transport thousands of pounds of methamphetamine, cocaine, and fentanyl to the United States to poison our citizens.”