Gen. Dan Caine leads Western Hemisphere defense meeting

Senior US military leaders are hosting more than 30 countries in Washington as the Trump administration seeks to deepen security cooperation across the Western Hemisphere. border controldrug trafficking and regional threats from global enemies.

“To put America first, we must put America first,” said Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, according to remarks shared by Joseph Humire, Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of Homeland Defense and Inter-American War.

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“We must work together to prevent any adversary or criminal actor from exploiting your territory or using your infrastructure to threaten what the great former American president Teddy Roosevelt once called ‘lasting peace in this hemisphere.'”

The meeting, organized by Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Dan Caine, took place amid a broader national security strategy that emphasizes more immediate threats, from fentanyl pipelines to transnational criminal networks to rivalries in the Arctic and instability in Venezuela.

The conference also coincides with US counter-action Mexican cartel drones Incident that violated American airspace near El Paso, Texas.

An administration official told Fox News: “Mexican cartel drones violated U.S. airspace. The War Department took action to disable the drones. The FAA and DOW determined there was no threat to commercial travel.”

The Federal Aviation Administration has temporarily restricted entry and exit from El Paso International Airport for what it describes as “specific security reasons.” Federal officials did not disclose operational details, but an administration official said the action was directly tied to anti-drone measures at the southern border.

The incident underscores the increasing use of unmanned systems by cartel networks and the increasing overlap between traditional criminal activities and homeland defense concerns; This issue is expected to surface in discussions among defense leaders meeting in Washington.

According to The New York Times, senior military leaders of Denmark, Britain and France, which have territories in the western hemisphere, were also invited.

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Gen. Francis Donovan, the new chief of Southern Command, which oversees Latin American and Caribbean operations, is expected to pressure regional counterparts to intensify cooperation against drug trafficking organizations and transnational criminal groups that operate across borders and increasingly make use of advanced technology. US officials have warned that cartel networks are using drones, encrypted communications and sophisticated smuggling routes to transport narcotics and personnel.

The video shows a kinetic attack on a narco-terrorist ship in international waters on Wednesday, December 31. The attacks come amid a wider military crackdown in the region following high-profile security actions. (U.S. Southern Command via X)

Gen. Gregory M. Guillot, head of U.S. Northern Command, which oversees the homeland and northern U.S. defenses including greenlandHe is expected to talk about border controls and the integration of advanced sensors in air, land, sea and space.

The issue of Arctic security is also likely to come to the fore in the discussions. The administration noted that increased Russian and Chinese activities in the Arctic are a long-term strategic concern and emphasized the importance of Greenland’s geographic location in terms of missile warning, maritime access, and critical mineral resources.

Former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, who was captured by US forces in a high-risk operation in January, now faces federal drug trafficking charges in the US. The capture reshaped U.S. security debates in the Western Hemisphere. (Leonardo Fernandez Viloria/Reuters)

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The summit comes on the heels of the dramatic US capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro in early January after months of counternarcotics boat attacks.

As the hemisphere’s security landscape continues to shift, defense officials and regional allies will be watching to see how other governments with hostile policies toward the United States will react to Washington’s increasingly assertive stance.