LatinNews Daily - 10 August 2026

Region: On 4 August the US Southern Command (Southcom) announced the activation of Joint Task Force Western Hemisphere (JTF-WHEM), which will replace Joint Task Force Southern Spear (JTF 84-2) and integrate the military capabilities of the US and 17 Latin American and Caribbean countries. According to a Southcom press release, this is “a purpose-built, joint task force that will synchronize U.S. military operations with allies and partners to counter threats, strengthen regional security, and respond rapidly to crises across the Western Hemisphere”. The task force is led by the US and made up of the 17 mostly right-leaning partner nations of the Americas Counter Cartel Coalition (A3C), launched by US President Donald Trump in March this year at the first Shield of the Americas summit “to eradicate the criminal cartels plaguing our region”. The partner countries are Argentina, Bolivia, The Bahamas, Belize, Chile, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Jamaica, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, and Trinidad & Tobago. Southcom commander, General Francis Donovan, said that the JTF-WHEM will provide “unified command and control at the tactical and operational levels”, integrating A3C nations’ military capabilities “to increase operational effectiveness against threats that undermine regional security and impact the United States and partner nations”. It also aims to strengthen Southcom’s “ability to respond quickly to contingencies and humanitarian crises throughout the region”. Donovan appointed US Marine Corps Maj. Gen. Kevin Jarrard to command the new task force, who “most recently led U.S. military support to U.S. Department of State-led disaster relief operations following the June 2026 earthquakes in Venezuela”. The press release explains that the task force will serve as Southcom’s “operational headquarters for executing missions across the region” and “will strengthen intelligence sharing, expand combined training, enhance interoperability, support maritime interdiction efforts, [and] build partner capacity”.

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