In a bold declaration, Donald Trump announced that the United States will initiate land strikes against drug cartels in Mexico, asserting that his global influence is only constrained by his “own morality.” This statement came shortly after the dramatic apprehension of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro.

During a Thursday night conversation with Fox News, Trump elaborated on the military strategy, emphasizing the pervasive control cartels have over Mexico. “We are going to start targeting the land concerning the cartels. It’s heartbreaking to witness the state of that country,” he remarked.

Earlier, Trump had underscored his extensive foreign policy authority. When questioned about the constraints on U.S. military actions in the region, he confidently responded, “My own morality. My own mind. It’s the only thing that can stop me,” as reported by The New York Times.

Trump’s rhetoric has also hinted at potential future U.S. operations in Greenland, Cuba, and Colombia, stirring discontent among NATO allies and world leaders. Figures such as the UK’s Keir Starmer and France’s Emmanuel Macron have expressed their concerns over these assertive plans.

‘My own morality. My own mind. It’s the only thing that can stop me,’ he told The New York Times. 

Trump has suggested that Greenland, Cuba and Colombia could be next on his list for US operations, angering NATO and world leaders ranging from the UK’s Keir Starmer to France’s Emanuel Macron.  

The president even interrupted his interview to take a phone call from Colombian President Gustavo Petro, who has promised he would ‘take up arms’ if Trump came after him.

Trump and his collaborators have flirted with the idea of invading or attacking the cartels in Mexico since his election campaign.

Donald Trump said that the United States is going to begin land strikes against Mexican drug cartels in its continued battle against narcoterrorists

The president, speaking to Sean Hannity following the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, teased out his threats over cartel influence and fentanyl trafficking. Pictured: The 2014 capture of drug lord Joaquin ‘El Chapo’ Guzman

He has accused Central American drug traffickers of killing anywhere from 250,000 to 300,000 Americans each year, blaming it on the cartels’ influence and fentanyl trafficking. 

‘It’s horrible, its devastated families, you lose a child or a parent. We’ve done a really good job, we’re knocking it down,’ Trump told Hannity.

Trump previously warned Mexico to ‘get their act together’ in the immediate aftermath of the capture of Maduro .

‘You have to do something with Mexico. We’re going to have to do something. We’d love Mexico to do it, they’re capable of doing it, but unfortunately, the cartels are very strong in Mexico.’ 

Trump and his collaborators have flirted with the idea of invading or attacking the cartels in Mexico since his election campaign.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has confirmed that the idea of US military intervention in Mexico has been raised repeatedly in her conversations with Trump, but said she has always rejected the offer.

She sees it as a nonstarter and insists that her relationship with Trump is one of mutual respect. 

Analysts believe the threats will continue to be a hallmark of the Trump administration’s negotiation style, especially this year when the US-Mexico-Canada free trade agreement (USMCA) is up for revision.

Trump previously warned Mexico to ‘get their act together’ in the immediate aftermath of the capture of Nicolas Maduro

Trump previously warned Mexico and President Claudia Sheinbaum (pictured left) to ‘get their act together’ in the immediate aftermath of the capture of Maduro

Earlier in the day, in a nearly three-hour interview with the Times, Trump bragged that ‘I don’t need international law’ when operating in the region. 

‘It depends what your definition of international law is,’ he added, while saying that he’s ‘not looking to hurt people.’ 

In the wake of his capture of Maduro, Trump has leveraged the remaining members of the regime into making deals on oil.

On Tuesday, Trump announced a deal with the Venezuelan regime to give the United States 30 to 50 million barrels of oil which could be worth up to $2billion.

‘I am pleased to announce that the Interim Authorities in Venezuela will be turning over between 30 and 50 MILLION Barrels of High Quality, Sanctioned Oil, to the United States of America,’ he posted to Truth Social. 

Trump also announced that he will be in control of the money made off sales – which at market price, could be worth up to $2billion according to Reuters – of the oil. 

‘This Oil will be sold at its Market Price, and that money will be controlled by me, as President of the United States of America, to ensure it is used to benefit the people of Venezuela and the United States!’ 

Trump has placed Energy Secretary Chris Wright in charge of executing the plan which is scheduled to begin immediately.  

Trump has largely put his team in charge of relations with Venezuela, while sidelining Venezuela opposition leader Maria Corina Machado 

‘It will be taken by storage ships, and brought directly to unloading docks in the United States,’ he wrote. 

Trump has largely put his team in charge of relations with Venezuela, while sidelining Venezuela opposition leader Maria Corina Machado.

The president said he’ll ‘say hello to her’ next week after refusing to allow her power in the transition away from Maduro and addressed her desire to give him her Nobel Peace Prize in an interview with Hannity earlier this week.

The president suggested he’d be honored but that he ought to get as many as eight Nobel Prizes. 

‘It would be a great honor. I did put out eight wars, eight and a quarter because Thailand and Cambodia started going at each other again,’ he said.

He argued that the Nobel committee not giving him the prize this year has been ‘a major embarrassment to Norway,’ which is where they’re located.

‘When you put out eight wars, in theory, you should get one for each war,’ he said.

Machado spoke to Hannity on Tuesday about a report that Trump’s displeasure with her acceptance of the prize, which he has long coveted, has left her out in the cold following the capture of leader Nicolas Maduro.

Earlier this week, Trump announced a deal with the Venezuelan regime to give the United States 30 to 50 million barrels of oil which could be worth up to $2billion 

‘Let me be very clear, as soon as I learned that we had been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, I dedicated to Trump because I knew at that point, he deserved it,’ she said. 

Shortly after her win in October, Machado took to X, writing: ‘I dedicate this prize to the suffering people of Venezuela and to President Trump for his decisive support of our cause!’

Machado affirmed that the capture of Maduro was another reason she believes ‘he deserved it.’ 

Hannity asked if she had spoken to Trump since the military operation and his comments about her running the country, and she admitted they hadn’t spoken since her Nobel Prize victory. 

The host then asked: ‘Did you at any point offer to give him the Nobel Peace Prize? Did that actually happen?’

‘Well, it hasn’t happened yet, but I would certainly love to be able to personally tell him that we believe — the Venezuelan people, because this is a prize of the Venezuelan people — certainly want to give it to him and share it with him.’ 

Trump distanced himself from Machado after Maduro’s capture, as White House insiders revealed his displeasure stems from her acceptance of the Nobel Peace Prize – an honor Trump has long coveted for himself.

‘If she had turned it down and said, ‘I can’t accept it because it’s Donald Trump’s,’ she’d be the president of Venezuela today,’ a person familiar with Trump’s thinking told the Washington Post. ‘Her acceptance of the prize was an ‘ultimate sin.’ 

On Saturday, Trump had largely dismissed Machado’s prospects, saying ‘it would be very tough for her to be the leader’ and claiming she ‘doesn’t have the support or the respect within the country.’ 

His comments caught Machado’s team off guard, according to people close to her.

Machado’s proxy candidate, Edmundo González, won more than two–thirds of the vote in last year’s election, which Maduro refused to honor by stepping down.

US officials say Venezuela’s vast oil wealth offers both an incentive for Rodríguez to engage with Trump and a source of leverage if she doesn’t.