US Drug Boat Strikes Fail to Curb Trafficking, Push Cartels to New Tactics
The Trump administration’s military campaign against drug-smuggling boats in international waters has failed to significantly reduce trafficking, according to The Daily Beast. Instead, the operation has forced cartels to adapt, leading to increased use of hidden cargo methods and alternative routes. Over a year into the campaign, Colombian navy divers have reported a rise in 'parasites,' heavy metal modules filled with cocaine bolted onto the underwater hulls of cargo ships leaving the Pacific port. Additionally, traffickers have shifted shipments eastward into the Amazon basin, hiding drugs in riverboats, and are using shallow coastal routes to evade US airstrikes. The Daily Beast characterizes the campaign as a 'disastrous flop' that has made cartels more savvy rather than deterring them.