US deploys 600 troops to Latin America for drug-trafficking operations

Summarised from 2 outlets · 3 reports · Updated 15 Oct, 23:32 · Archive

The United States is deploying several hundred soldiers from the 10th Mountain Division to Panama for jungle training and joint exercises against drug traffickers.

The United States military is deploying several hundred soldiers from the Army's 10th Mountain Division, based at Fort Drum in New York, to Latin America for training and joint exercises. The first troops from the roughly 600-soldier battalion are expected to deploy to Panama, where they will train at a new jungle training facility before eventually working with local forces in Colombia and Honduras.

The deployment is part of the Pentagon's expanded campaign against drug-trafficking networks in the region. The troops will be forward-staged under US Southern Command (SOUTHCOM), which will determine their ultimate deployment locations. They may also support US special operations personnel who are advising local militaries conducting raids against suspected drug traffickers.

Separately, several hundred additional soldiers from the 10th Mountain Division are expected to help staff a new Western Hemisphere military command based in Miami. The Pentagon's broader campaign against suspected drug traffickers has been ongoing for more than a year, during which US forces have conducted dozens of strikes resulting in more than 235 people killed. General Francis Donovan, commander of SOUTHCOM, has indicated the military is considering conducting operations against trafficking networks on land.

How it is being reported

• U.S. sending hundreds of troops to Latin America for training, New York Times reportsThe U.S. will send several hundred Army soldiers to train and conduct exercises with Latin American military forces, The New York Times reports. Officials said it is part of an effort to fight drug trafficking in the region. Eric Schmitt, senior national security correspondent for The New York Times, joins CBS News to discuss his story.CBS News · 15 Oct, 23:07
• Pentagon sends hundreds of Army troops to Latin America for training as drug-trafficking campaign expandsTroops from the 10th Mountain Division are deploying to Panama for jungle training as the Pentagon expands military operations against drug traffickers.Fox News · 15 Oct, 06:20
• Pentagon sends hundreds of Army troops to Latin America for training as drug-trafficking campaign expandsTroops from the 10th Mountain Division are deploying to Panama for jungle training as the Pentagon expands military operations against drug traffickers.Fox News · 15 Oct, 06:20

In this story: 10th Mountain Division · Pentagon · US Southern Command · Panama · Colombia · Honduras · Fort Drum

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