The U.S. Southern Command established the Joint Task Force Western Hemisphere on Aug. 4 to facilitate and coordinate action against organized criminal threats by U.S. military forces and regional partner states, according to Defense One. The task force is the latest sign that SOUTHCOM sees a need for greater cooperation with governments across Latin America as Washington expands its security role in the region.
The task force is not the only regional mechanism created this year. In March, the United States established the Americas Counter Cartel Coalition, a U.S.-led body intended to coordinate regional actions against transnational organized crime. The two organizations give U.S. and SOUTHCOM officials forums to build strategic consensus, guide operational planning, mediate disputes among participating governments and influence states outside the groups.
The task force’s stated focus is organized criminal threats. Its creation comes after a period of more direct U.S. activity in Latin America, including operations involving local security forces. Operation Southern Spear began last year with U.S. Navy strikes against vessels alleged to be involved in drug trafficking, the Defense One analysis says. It later expanded to include the U.S. abduction of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and renewed economic and military pressure on Cuba.
SOUTHCOM also worked to integrate U.S. forces into local security operations. In March, the command dispatched forces to assist Ecuadorian security forces in taking action against an alleged criminal hub inside Ecuador. The activity placed U.S. military resources alongside regional security forces while organized-crime cooperation was becoming a more prominent part of the command’s regional work.
The Joint Task Force Western Hemisphere appears likely to be used soon. On Aug. 12, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced that Colombia, Honduras and Guatemala had approved U.S. participation in combined operations against criminal entities. That decision establishes that the three governments have authorized a form of joint activity with the United States, but it does not by itself identify them as members of the task force or specify how those operations will be organized.
The broader significance of the task force is political as well as operational. The Defense One analysis describes the task force and the coalition as channels through which U.S. and SOUTHCOM leaders can pursue strategic agreement, shape operational planning and address disagreements among participating states. The organizations can also give Washington a means to engage governments that do not participate directly.
The effort faces resistance rooted in the region’s history of U.S. intervention. Several Latin American governments have adopted tougher policies toward organized crime, and governments in the region were broadly sympathetic to Maduro’s removal, according to the analysis. But the boat strikes associated with Southern Spear and the Maduro operation also caused unease. That tension creates a need for U.S. officials to seek regional buy-in, or at least acquiescence, for a larger American role.
U.S. officials have pursued participation through political and material incentives. The analysis says security and economic assistance is increasingly being tied to commitments to cooperate in areas of U.S. interest. It also identifies the possibility of future formal deployments of U.S. troops inside regional partner states, although the task force’s establishment does not itself announce such a deployment.
For now, the task force’s immediate purpose is to facilitate and coordinate action against organized criminal threats with regional partners. Its creation, alongside the Americas Counter Cartel Coalition and the announced approvals for combined operations involving Colombia, Honduras and Guatemala, places multilateral cooperation at the center of SOUTHCOM’s current regional security effort. The organizations also provide Washington with institutional channels for seeking support for a broader role in Latin America.