President Trump emphasizes the importance of the western hemisphere and Latin America by participating in a second meeting of the “Shield of Americas” team.  The objective of the assembly is to secure the western hemisphere, coordinate economic, political, and security efforts among participating countries to strengthen judicial practices, improve investment opportunities, and build hemispheric partnerships. The shield emphasizes intelligence sharing and coordinated operations to locate and dismantle drug cartel networks and associated criminal infrastructure.

Structure and Operations: The Shield of the Americas functions as a head-of-state level organization, working closely with the Americas Counter Cartel Coalition (A3C), which is led by USSOUTHCOM and focuses on military and security operations against cartels. The coalition’s operational arm, the Americas Counter Cartel Conference, brings together defense and security ministers from member states to coordinate strategies against drug trafficking, organized crime, and threats to critical infrastructure. Participating countries gain access to U.S. military equipment, training, intelligence, and surveillance capabilities, including support from the U.S. Space Force’s Tactical Surveillance, Reconnaissance, and Tracking system.

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