US removes Venezuela from drug list, Trump says

The Trump administration has taken Venezuela off the US list of countries judged to have "failed demonstrably" in efforts to combat illegal drug trafficking, a change communicated to Congress in a statement from President Trump. The administration credited improved cooperation with Venezuela’s interim government following what it described as the arrest and removal of Nicolás Maduro in January and said those developments have led to tangible results against drug cartels. Trump's statement also indicated that Colombia and Bolivia are under consideration for removal from the same list in future reports. Despite praising recent electoral shifts in Bolivia and Colombia toward conservative leaders, the administration kept their current designations in place for now, while expressing expectations that those governments will step up coca eradication and action against what the statement called "narcoterrorist" groups. The report listed Afghanistan, Bolivia, Burma and Colombia as having failed demonstrably to control narcotics production and trafficking. It also criticized several other countries, including Mexico, Canada, Brazil and Nicaragua, for shortcomings in their anti-drug efforts. The administration framed the policy changes within a broader regional context, pointing to a string of right-leaning governments in Latin America as opportunities for expanded US cooperation on security and economic matters. Alongside the designation changes, the administration said it has been negotiating with Venezuela’s interim leadership to grant US oil companies access to the country’s resources. The White House also announced a reallocation of $52 million in foreign military funding toward Latin America, shifting those resources away from European and Middle Eastern partners to bolster regional security initiatives.