RCW Says No to War in Latin America and the Caribbean

15 November 2025

The US government is trying to manufacture consent for war in Venezuela, and possibly also Colombia and Mexico and others in Latin America. In recent weeks, the US military has launched several attacks against boats in the Caribbean, killing dozens of Venezuelan, Colombian, and Trinidadian citizens in a series of extrajudicial killings. The United States is using the pretext of its “war on drugs” to justify these actions, and for sending B-52 bombers and an aircraft carrier to the region and threatening a ground invasion. The US Secretary of War last week announced “Operation Southern Spear” aimed at targeting “narco-terrorists” in the Western Hemisphere. However, most of the world understands that this is about regime change and control of Venezuelan oil. The US government is also escalating its threats against Colombia, which has been a leader in the Hague Group’s efforts to end Israel’s genocide. And it has said it will send ground troops and the CIA into Mexico to fight drug cartels. 

RCW opposes the mounting militarism, threats of invasion, unlawful military attacks, and extrajudicial killing in Latin America and the Caribbean. The “war on drugs,” like the “war on terror” and “war on communism” before it, is simply a pretext for US imperialism. As a joint statement of Latin American and Caribbean leaders has said, “We have lived this nightmare before. US military interventions of the 20th century brought dictatorships, disappearances, and decades of trauma to our nations. We know the terrible cost of allowing foreign powers to wage war on our continent. We cannot—we will not—allow history to repeat itself.” 

All states must object to US military intervention and extrajudicial killings in Latin America and the Caribbean, and work to prevent such attacks, including through arms embargoes and ending intelligence sharing. The US attacks have been facilitated by Canadian-made weapon systems; an investigation by Project Ploughshares found that at least two of the attacks relied on advanced electro-optical/infrared sensor systems built in Hamilton, Ontario, by L3Harris WESCAM. The Canadian government must stop the transfer of weapons, parts, and components to the US, as they are being used to violate international law. The United Kingdom has recognised this, stopping some of its intelligence sharing with the US because it does not want to be complicit in unlawful US military strikes. All US allies must pressure it to stop its unlawful attacks and threats and refrain from further military or CIA action in the region.