Terrorist Designation of Cartels Gives US New Power to Target Maduro-Linked Groups: Rubio

‘We must start treating them as armed terrorist organizations, not simply as drug trafficking organizations,’ Rubio said.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio testifies before the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations on Capitol Hill in Washington on May 20, 2025. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that after designating several criminal groups as global terrorist organizations—including one linked to Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro—the United States will be able to use all its power to eradicate them.

“Here’s the thing. We cannot continue to just treat these guys as local street gangs,” Rubio said in an interview with Raymond Arroyo, host at the Catholic media outlet EWTN, broadcast on Aug. 7.