The lack of reference to the Cartel of the Suns and the overall minimal mention of Venezuela in the DEA’s National Drug Threat Assessment reports for 2024 and 2025 is attributed to the agency’s shift towards synthetic drugs, such as fentanyl and methamphetamine.
Venezuela is referenced in these reports mainly in relation to the Aragua Train (TDA), a Venezuelan criminal organization recently designated by the U.S. government—alongside the Cartel of the Suns—as a global terrorist organization.
The TDA is described in the reports as a violent group operating within Venezuelan migrant communities in the U.S., involved in street-level drug trafficking (distribution of “tusi” or 2C), extortion, and forced prostitution. It is not portrayed as a major player in mass drug trafficking to the United States but rather a secondary threat, designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) in February 2025.
The DEA’s focus on synthetic drugs, primarily from Mexico and China, is due to their categorization as the main direct threats to the United States. Additionally, the lack of cooperation with Venezuela since 2005 has limited intelligence on drug trafficking in the country.
Delcy Rodríguez, the Venezuelan vice president, seized upon this absence in the reports to criticize U.S. accusations, responding to the allegations made by Terry Cole, which she described as political “tricks” aimed at justifying aggressions and increasing the desire to appropriate Venezuela’s energy resources.
Shift in DEA’s Threat Focus
The DEA has redirected its priority towards synthetic drugs—especially fentanyl and methamphetamine—responsible for the majority of overdose deaths in the United States.
The NDTA reports for 2024 and 2025 highlight that these synthetic drugs are primarily produced by the Sinaloa and Jalisco New Generation cartels in Mexico, using chemical precursors from China.
The NDTA 2024 explicitly mentions the “shift from plant-based drugs (like cocaine and heroin) to synthetics,” while noting that Venezuela does not play a significant role in this new threat landscape for the DEA.
NDTA 2024: Total Absence of Mentions of Venezuela
The 2024 report does not mention Venezuela, Venezuelans, or the “Aragua Train” (TDA) at all after a thorough review of the document.
The reason aligns with what we’ve mentioned so far: the DEA’s new focus on direct and synthetic threats. Fentanyl and methamphetamine account for 70% of the overdose deaths in the U.S., which totaled 107,941 in 2022.
Moreover, since 2005, during the presidency of Hugo Chávez, the DEA was expelled, severing collaborative ties with the agency, a move that limited access to reliable data regarding drug trafficking in Venezuela.
NDTA 2025: Minimal Mention of Venezuela
In the 2025 DEA report, Venezuela is mentioned only in relation to the Aragua Train (TDA), a criminal organization founded in Venezuela.
This report continues the focus from 2024 towards synthetic drugs. The NDTA 2025 continues to emphasize fentanyl—with decreasing purity but often mixed with tranquilizers like xylazine—and methamphetamine, with Mexico and China cited as key sources.
Overdose deaths dropped by 20% in 2024, but the report attributes 69% of these deaths (74,702 in 2023) to synthetic opioids.
The Aragua Train is identified as an emerging threat, but not a central one. Its inclusion stems from its recent designation as an FTO, and its role in drug trafficking is limited to local distribution, not mass production or transit.
Although Venezuela is designated in other documents, like the “Presidential Determination on Drug Transit Countries 2025,” as a transit country for cocaine, the NDTA focuses on immediate threats to the U.S. Corruption in Venezuela facilitates groups like TDA or ELN, yet the lack of direct data from the DEA makes its mention marginal.
What Does the NTDA 2025 Say?
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) provides in its 2025 report titled “National Drug Threat Assessment 2025” an overview of current challenges related to illicit drugs in the United States.
The report focuses on the significant threat posed by transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), particularly Mexican cartels like Sinaloa and Jalisco Nueva Generación, which are the primary suppliers of fentanyl and methamphetamine.
The trends in overdose deaths, drug seizures, traffic routes, and methods of illicit financing—including the use of cryptocurrencies and clandestine Chinese banking networks—are at the forefront of the report. Other substances such as heroin, cocaine, marijuana, new psychoactive substances, and controlled prescription medications are also discussed, along with the specific situation of drug trafficking in indigenous communities.
Impact Statistics of Synthetic Drugs in the U.S.
The National Drug Threat Assessment 2024 cites data from 2022 indicating that there were 107,941 overdose deaths, along with 79 million fentanyl pills seized.
Meanwhile, the National Drug Threat Assessment 2025 provides data from 2023 pointing out 74,702 deaths, with 69% attributed to synthetic opioids. It reports 230 million lethal doses seized in 2025.
Joe Biden’s Drug Report for 2025
However, the lack of reference to Venezuela in the aforementioned DEA reports should not be interpreted as a absolution from responsibility regarding drug transit or production.
The report from then U.S. President Joe Biden for 2025 submitted to the State Department includes Venezuela alongside Afghanistan, the Bahamas, Belize, Bolivia, Burma, the People’s Republic of China (PRC), Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, India, Jamaica, Laos, Mexico, Nicaragua, Pakistan, Panama, and Peru, as countries of transit and production.
Biden designated Bolivia, Burma, and Venezuela as governments that have demonstrably failed over the past 12 months to fulfill their obligations under international anti-drug trafficking agreements (1).
Source consulted:
1) The White House. “Memorandum on the Presidential Determination on Major Drug Transit or Major Illicit Drug Producing Countries for Fiscal Year 2025.” September 15, 2024. Available at: https://bidenwhitehouse.archives.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2024/09/15/memorandum-on-the-presidential-determination-on-major-drug-transit-or-major-illicit-drug-producing-countries-for-fiscal-year-2025/