DEA Reports Operation Southern Spear Failed to Reduce Cocaine Flow

The U.S. military has paused Operation Southern Spear, a campaign of lethal strikes against suspected drug-trafficking vessels in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific. Since September 2025, the operation resulted in the destruction of at least 67 boats and at least 221 deaths. The strikes, which continued after the January 3 capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, appear to have ceased as of June 21, 2026.

Donald Trump claimed the operation slashed seaborne drug trafficking by 97% to 98.2%. However, a Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) assessment contradicts these figures, finding that cocaine prices, purity, and availability in the United States remain essentially unchanged. DEA analysts report that traffickers adapted by using larger commercial vessels that hug coastlines to avoid international waters and increasing the use of clandestine aircraft routes through Colombia and Venezuela into Guyana and Suriname.

White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly and Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell defended the campaign, stating it imposed systemic friction on criminal networks. Conversely, Marine Gen. Francis L. Donovan, head of U.S. Southern Command, testified to Congress that kinetic strikes are likely not the most effective tool. Reports also indicate the strategy hampered traditional investigations as informants fled the field to avoid being targeted by airstrikes. While the administration maintained the strikes served as a deterrent, global cocaine production has reached record highs.