7. AMERICAS - Counter Cartel Americas Military Intervention - MARY ANASTASIA O’GRADY 101526

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Counter Cartel Americas Military Intervention

Mary Anastasia O’Grady discusses the deployment of American military troops to Ecuador and Panama under President Trump’s Shield of the Americas framework. She explains that transnational criminal cartels have evolved into vertically integrated syndicates controlling illegal mining, extortion, and drug trafficking routes. While regional center-right governments request assistance to push back cartel and Chinese influence, O’Grady cautions against using UScombat troops directly, emphasizing that persistent domestic American drug demand continues to drive the crisis. (7)