Rubio Declares Maduro a Narco-Terrorist: U.S. Redefines Venezuela’s Regime as Criminal Cartel

RUBIO MAKES THE NEW US POSITION ON VENEZUELA OFFICIAL. NO MAS DROGAS!

WASHINGTON, D.C. — In a striking escalation of U.S. rhetoric and policy, Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared over the weekend that Venezuelan strongman Nicolás Maduro is not the legitimate president of Venezuela, but rather “the head of the Cartel de los Soles”—a narco-terrorist syndicate operating under the guise of a government.

“Maduro is NOT the President of Venezuela and his regime is NOT the legitimate government,” Rubio posted on X (formerly Twitter) on July 27. “Maduro is the head of the Cartel de los Soles, a narco-terror organization which has taken possession of a country. And he is under indictment for pushing drugs into the United States.”

The post was not a one-off. It marked a formal pivot in U.S. policy, following years of treating Maduro as a dictator presiding over a failed state. Now, with mounting legal and intelligence evidence, the Biden-Trump transition team, carried over under Secretary Rubio, is publicly acknowledging that Venezuela’s ruling elite is not merely authoritarian but criminal—a state-captured drug cartel engaged in transnational narcotics trafficking, terrorism, and organized crime.

The Cartel de los Soles: Military Insignia and Criminal Enterprise

The Cartel de los Soles (Cartel of the Suns) is named after the gold sun insignias worn by Venezuelan military generals. But the innocuous name belies a sprawling and violent criminal network that reaches across Latin America and into Europe, Africa, and the United States.

The cartel first emerged in the 1990s, when rogue elements in Venezuela’s National Guard began facilitating cocaine shipments from Colombia’s FARC insurgents. What began as petty smuggling has since metastasized into a powerful web of corrupt generals, political leaders, and state-run enterprises coordinating vast narcotics and arms trafficking operations.

In March 2020, the U.S. Department of Justice indicted Maduro and 14 senior officials on charges of narco-terrorism, accusing them of working directly with FARC rebels to move thousands of tons of cocaine into Central America and the U.S. The indictment described Venezuela as a “safe haven” for terrorists and drug smugglers. Despite international condemnation, Maduro remains in power, propped up by military loyalty, control of state media, and alliances with other rogue actors.

Ties to Terror and Transnational Crime

The Cartel de los Soles is not operating in isolation. U.S. intelligence agencies and regional analysts believe the cartel has forged strategic partnerships with:

• FARC and ELN guerrilla groups in Colombia, providing them with weapons, financing, and safe territory in exchange for drug production and trafficking rights.

• Tren de Aragua, Venezuela’s most powerful transnational gang, which has expanded operations into Chile, Peru, and the U.S., specializing in extortion, human trafficking, and hit jobs.

• The Sinaloa Cartel, a U.S.-designated Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO), with whom the Cartel de los Soles allegedly coordinates logistics and money laundering.

• Iranian proxies and Hezbollah, reportedly facilitated through Venezuelan diplomatic missions and sanctioned banks.

This convergence of narcotics and terrorism—narco-terrorism—is the foundation for the U.S. Treasury Department’s July 25 designation of the Cartel de los Soles as a “Specially Designated Global Terrorist Entity.” Under Executive Order 13224, all assets associated with the cartel are frozen, and individuals or institutions facilitating its activities risk secondary sanctions.

A Shift in U.S. Doctrine: From Dictatorship to Criminal Enterprise

The United States has, for years, attempted to isolate Maduro diplomatically and economically. Sanctions were levied, opposition figures were supported, and the 2018 and 2024 elections were declared illegitimate. But none of these measures addressed the cartel-like structure of the Venezuelan regime.

That changes now.

With the Cartel de los Soles labeled a terrorist organization, the U.S. gains a much broader set of legal and operational tools:

1. Criminal prosecution and extradition: Former regime insiders like Hugo “El Pollo” Carvajal have already been extradited and pleaded guilty to trafficking and terror-related charges. His testimony may serve to build stronger cases against Maduro and inner circle officials.

2. Global sanctions and financial warfare: The designation enables OFAC and the Department of Justice to freeze accounts, issue indictments, and even penalize foreign banks or corporations that conduct business with entities linked to the cartel.

3. FBI and DEA operations abroad: U.S. intelligence and law enforcement are now empowered to pursue cartel facilitators worldwide—including in Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East—using terrorism statutes and intelligence-sharing agreements.

4. Public diplomatic pressure: By reframing Venezuela’s regime as a narco-state rather than a failed socialist experiment, the U.S. is pushing for broader international action from the UN, OAS, and Interpol.

What Comes Next?

The implications are profound. Maduro is no longer simply a dictator to be outlasted. He is now, in the eyes of the U.S. government, the head of a terrorist cartel that endangers public safety both in Venezuela and abroad. As Secretary Rubio signaled, this shift marks not only a moral and legal repositioning, but likely a strategic one—one that could lead to international criminal court proceedings, aggressive asset seizures, and even paramilitary interdiction operations if U.S. citizens or interests are further targeted.

“Venezuela is not a legitimate government under Maduro,” Rubio told the press on July 30. “It is a criminal syndicate with the structure of a state and the ambition of a cartel. The United States will act accordingly.”

The hemisphere is watching—and for the Venezuelan people, long abandoned by their own institutions, this may be the first true shot at justice.