The extraordinary comments from Claudia Sheinbaum came after it was revealed that Donald Trump had signed a “secretive” order directing the Pentagon to target drug cartels considered to be terrorist organisations. That raises the prospect of the US military engaging cartels abroad. Given much of the drugs coming into the US pass through Mexico, that country could be a target for military action. It comes as the US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced a $76 million bounty for information leading to the arrest of Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro. The US has claimed the president of the Latin American nation is the leader of a drug cartel. ‘There will be no invasion of Mexico’ In the past, the US has used its military in a number of Latin American nations including Cuba and Panama. President Sheinbaum is furious at any suggestion the US military could now play a role on Mexican territory, especially as a crackdown put in place by her has seen the amount of drugs crossing the border dramatically fall. “The United States is not going to come to Mexico with the military,” Ms Sheinbaum said on Friday, Mexico time. “We co-operate, we collaborate, but there is not going to be an invasion. That is ruled out, absolutely ruled out. “It is not part of any agreement, far from it. “When it has been brought up, we have always said no.” That suggests the US has approached Mexico seeking permission to go after cartels within its borders. It was said that President Trump had to be dissuaded from using the US military in Mexico during his first term. Ms Sheinbaum was adamant that whatever the Trump order meant it did not mean that the American military would be positioned in Mexico. “We were informed that this executive order was coming and that it had nothing to do with the participation of any military personnel or any institution in our territory”. A major operation by Mexico with hundreds of troops targeting drugs gangs has seen fentanyl seizures in the US drop by 50 per cent in the past few months. That casts some doubt on why the US would need to take such drastic action. Trump ‘secret directive’ On Friday, US time, the New York Times said Mr Trump has “secretly signed a directive” reclassifying some drug cartels as terrorist organisations. That gives the US military an official basis to conduct operations either at sea or in foreign countries. The US military has subsequently begun drawing up options for Mr Trump. It is unclear what if any action the US could take not just in Mexico but any number of Latin Americans countries. It’s not thought the US is looking to topple governments, for instance. But, the US military could intercept suspected drug transports in international waters; it could bomb suspected drug factories or land troops in a foreign nation in an attempt to capture suspects. However, without the approval of Congress it’s possible any action could raise legal issues including murder charges against US personnel if civilians, or even suspects, were killed in an overseas operation. $76m reward for arrest of country’s leader In late July, the Trump admission added the Cartel de los Sole, or Cartel of the Suns, to the list of global terror groups. It claims Venezuela’s President Maduro is the head of the gang. On Friday, Secretary Rubio said the US was “announcing a reward offer increase of up to $US50 million ($A76m) under the Narcotics Rewards Program for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of Nicolas Maduro for violating US narcotics laws”. “For over a decade, Maduro has been a leader of Cartel de los Soles, which is responsible for trafficking drugs into the United States. “Since 2020, Maduro has strangled democracy and grasped at power in Venezuela,” added Mr Rubio. “Maduro claimed to have won Venezuela’s 2024 presidential election but failed to present any evidence that he had prevailed. “The United States has refused to recognise Maduro as the winner of 2024 election and does not recognise him as the President of Venezuela.”