BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — October 22, 2026. President Javier Milei’s government has designated five Latin American criminal and armed organizations as terrorist entities, including Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel and La Nueva Familia Michoacana, in a move aimed at strengthening Argentina’s national security and counterterrorism framework.
The decision was formalized Thursday through a joint resolution issued by Argentina’s Ministry of National Security and Ministry of Foreign Affairs, International Trade and Worship. The measure was published in the country’s Official Gazette and covers organizations operating in Mexico, Colombia and Ecuador.
FIVE ORGANIZATIONS ADDED TO ARGENTINA’S TERRORISM REGISTRY
The resolution identifies the Sinaloa Cartel and La Nueva Familia Michoacana, both based in Mexico, alongside Colombia’s Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia–People’s Army (FARC-EP) and National Liberation Army (ELN), as well as Ecuador’s Los Tiguerones.
All five organizations were ordered added to Argentina’s Public Registry of Persons and Entities Linked to Acts of Terrorism and Terrorist Financing, known by its Spanish acronym, RePET.
The registry is intended to help authorities identify entities associated with terrorism and its financing, improve preventive measures and strengthen the exchange of intelligence and security information with foreign governments.
ARGENTINA CITES RISKS TO LIVES AND PROPERTY
According to the resolution, the decision was based on confidential assessments prepared by the two ministries.
Argentine authorities cited the organizations’ transnational reach, operational capabilities, regional expansion and diversification of illicit activities as factors contributing to the designation.
The government concluded that these characteristics create risks to the lives, assets and property of people living in Argentina.
The measure reflects the administration’s stated concern that organized criminal networks operating beyond Argentina’s borders can also pose threats to domestic security.
TWO MEXICAN CRIMINAL ORGANIZATIONS INCLUDED
The inclusion of the Sinaloa Cartel and La Nueva Familia Michoacana brings two major Mexican criminal organizations within Argentina’s counterterrorism designation framework.
The Sinaloa Cartel has long been associated with international drug trafficking networks, while La Nueva Familia Michoacana has been linked to organized criminal activity in several Mexican states.
Their designation by Argentina does not, by itself, establish new criminal convictions against individual members or mean that all persons allegedly associated with either organization have been found guilty of terrorism.
COLOMBIAN AND ECUADORIAN GROUPS ALSO DESIGNATED
The resolution also names Colombia’s ELN and FARC-EP, as well as Los Tiguerones, an Ecuadorian criminal organization.
The designation of FARC-EP requires particular distinction because the organization that signed Colombia’s 2016 peace agreement underwent demobilization, while dissident armed factions have continued operating under related names.
Argentina’s resolution identifies FARC-EP, but the supplied information does not specify which factions or structures are covered by that designation.
The inclusion of organizations from three countries underscores the Argentine government’s focus on the cross-border dimensions of organized crime and armed-group activity.
WHAT THE DESIGNATION MEANS
Adding the organizations to RePET provides Argentine authorities with a formal basis for applying the country’s existing counterterrorism and terrorist-financing framework to the listed entities.
The government says the measure will support earlier detection of potential threats, prevention efforts and information-sharing with other countries.
The resolution does not, on its own, establish that Argentina will conduct military operations against the organizations or authorize action inside Mexico, Colombia or Ecuador.
The announcement marks another step in the Milei administration’s approach to regional security, with its practical impact depending on enforcement, international cooperation and the application of Argentine law.
