US warships’ Caribbean mission will divert drugs to the Pacific, experts warn

The deployment of US warships in the Caribbean to counter drug-trafficking could simply divert the problem to the Pacific, experts in the region warn.

While much attention has focused on the political tension between the United States and Venezuela – even more so after a strike on an alleged Venezuelan drug boat on Tuesday – security specialists warn that the focus on Caribbean trafficking routes by American ships could have serious, unintended consequences for countries struggling to prevent drug flows on the Pacific corridor – such as Ecuador, Peru and Colombia.

“What’s going to happen is that, by blocking this Caribbean corridor, drug traffickers will avoid continuing to transport drugs through that route, because it’s more dangerous, and they’ll incur greater losses. They’ll redi