President Donald Trump said he will pardon a former Honduran president sentenced to 45 years in prison on drug and gun charges, a clemency move that comes as Trump regularly speaks about the need to crack down on illegal narcotics.

Trump said in a Nov. 28 social media post that he is pardoning Juan Orlando Hernández, the former two-term president of Honduras who was convicted last year by a U.S. jury for "conspiring to distribute more than 400 tons of cocaine and related firearms offenses," according to the Justice Department.

"I will be granting a Full and Complete Pardon to Former President Juan Orlando Hernandez who has been, according to many people that I greatly respect, treated very harshly and unfairly," Trump wrote on social media.

The Justice Department said in a press release last year that Hernández received millions in bribes from "violent drug-trafficking organizations" and used the money "to fuel his rise in Honduran politics."

"In turn, as Hernández rose to power in Honduras, he provided increased support and protection for his co-conspirators, allowing them to move mountains of cocaine, commit acts of violence and murder, and help turn Honduras into one of the most dangerous countries in the world," the press release states.

Trump has made cracking down on illegal drug trafficking central to his second term, imposing tariffs on countries he accuses of not doing enough to stop fentanyl distribution. His administration has also launched military strikes on alleged drug trafficking boats in the Caribbean. Trump told military service members during a Thanksgiving call that he soon will expand the military operation to include strikes on land.

Trump on Nov. 28 also waded into Honduran politics, reiterating his support for Nasry Asfura of the conservative National Party, who Trump said would push back against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and "his Narcoterrorists."

"Will Maduro and his Narcoterrorists take over another country like they have taken over Cuba, Nicaragua, and Venezuela?" Trump wrote in a social media post. "The man who is standing up for Democracy, and fighting against Maduro, is Tito Asfura."

Contributing: Reuters

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump says he will pardon former Honduran president convicted on drug charges

Reporting by Zac Anderson, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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