Belize remains on US major drug transit list

By Zoila Palma:  Belize has been named among 23 countries designated by the United States as major drug transit or major illicit drug-producing countries for Fiscal Year 2027, according to a presidential determination submitted to Congress on September 15, 2026.

The list also includes Afghanistan, The Bahamas, Bolivia, Burma, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, India, Jamaica, Laos, Mexico, Nicaragua, Pakistan, Panama, Peru and Venezuela.

The presidential determination specifically states, “A country’s presence on the foregoing list is not necessarily a reflection of its government’s current counterdrug efforts, or coordination with the United States.”

It explains that countries are included based on geographic, commercial and economic factors that can facilitate the movement or production of drugs or precursor chemicals, even where governments have implemented strong narcotics-control and law-enforcement measures.

The determination separately identifies Afghanistan, Bolivia, Burma and Colombia as countries that, during the previous 12 months, had “failed demonstrably” to make substantial efforts to meet their international counternarcotics obligations.

The document also outlines the Trump administration’s assessment of drug-control efforts around the region.

It states, “My Administration has made historic progress in protecting the American people from deadly drugs and vicious narcoterrorist organizations,” while claiming that seizures of fentanyl and other drugs entering the United States have fallen by more than half. The determination further says, “Under the Americas Counter Cartel Coalition, an alliance with over a dozen countries in the Western Hemisphere, we have achieved historic results,” citing reductions in U.S.-bound drug flows and seizures of illicit cartel finances.

Venezuela, which remains on the major drug-transit or illicit-producing-country list, was removed from the separate “failed demonstrably” category.

Trump stated, “I have determined Venezuela should no longer be designated as having failed demonstrably to fulfill its drug control commitments.” He attributed the decision to what the administration described as increased cooperation with Venezuela’s interim government and said he expects continued progress against narcotrafficking organizations.

Colombia, meanwhile, remains in the “failed demonstrably” category, although Trump said he would consider lifting the designation if the country makes progress in coca eradication and dismantling narcoterrorist networks.

The FY2027 determination therefore places Belize on the U.S. government’s broader list because of factors associated with drug transit or production, while not designating Belize as having failed demonstrably to meet its counternarcotics obligations.

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