Trump Administration Designates Venezuela's Maduro as Member of Foreign Terrorist Organization Cartel de los Soles

The State Department formally designated the "Cartel de los Soles" — the alleged network of corrupt Venezuelan military and government officials overseen by President Nicolás Maduro — as a Foreign Terrorist Organization. The designation authorized fresh sanctions targeting Maduro's assets and infrastructure, and bolstered the legal and political case for potential U.S. military action in Venezuela under the guise of counternarcotics operations. Venezuela called the designation a "ridiculous fabrication."