Name: Trump signs order labelling fentanyl ‘weapon of mass destruction’
Uploaded: 2025-12-17T05:05:15.581Z
Duration: 2 min 25 s
Description: Label is the latest instance of Trump using militarised, symbolic language to justify US operations against drug smuggling.

Label is the latest instance of Trump using militarised, symbolic language to justify US operations against drug smuggling.

Washington

U.S. President Donald Trump has signed an executive order officially designating fentanyl as a weapon of mass destruction. The administration cites the high number of annual deaths attributed to fentanyl as justification for the move, which follows increased border security and tariffs on countries alleged to be involved in the drug's supply chain.

The order could provide new legal grounds for U.S. military action, particularly against countries like Venezuela, though there is no evidence fentanyl is produced or trafficked from there. Critics argue that expanding the definition of weapons of mass destruction to include opiates marks a significant shift in U.S. policy and international legal norms.

Trump signs order labelling fentanyl ‘weapon of mass destruction’

The smuggling of fentanyl has been a primary justification for the ramping up of border security by the Trump administration. It's been cited as a reason for extreme tariffs imposed on Mexico to the south and even Canada to the north. Tariffs on China, along with a threat of further sanctions, were imposed partly because of what the Trump administration says is that country's role in providing precursors for the manufacture of the opiate. All this, though, but a precursor to an unprecedented executive order by the U.S. commander-in-chief. No bomb does what this is doing. Two hundred to three hundred thousand people die every year that we know of. So we're formally classifying fentanyl as a weapon of mass destruction. The shock and awe of the announcement is straight out of the playbook of the previous administration when George W. Bush used the alleged presence of WNDs to invade Iraq and effect regime change there. There's an obvious parallel to current events, with more than 80 people killed in U.S. strikes off the coast of Venezuela and Trump officials talking openly about the possibility of regime change in that country. The declaration of fentanyl as a weapon of mass destruction would give the U.S. additional legal justification to use military force against Venezuela. There's no fentanyl that's being produced or coming from Venezuela to the United States or anywhere else to begin with. So the idea that we would be trying to address our overdose crisis by blowing up boats coming from Venezuela or threatening Venezuela itself is nonsense. President Trump is pushing the boundaries of what constitutes a weapon of mass destruction. The Department of Homeland Security has a formal definition. A weapon of mass destruction is a nuclear, radiological, chemical, biological or other device that is intended to harm a large number of people. To include an opiate in this definition is a clear signal that the gloves are off, thrown away with traditional international limitations on legal military action across borders. I'm Mike Hanna, Al Jazeera, at the White House.

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