Trump urges Shield of the Americas nations to label narcoterrorists a common threat

US President Donald Trump called on countries in the "Shield of the Americas" initiative to officially designate narcoterrorists as a common threat to regional stability and impose sanctions on foreign organizations listed as terrorist groups by Washington. Speaking Tuesday at a Shield of the Americas meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York, Trump described the initiative as a major economic and national security alliance in the Western Hemisphere. He urged member countries to apply heavy sanctions against 24 foreign organizations designated as terrorist entities by the United States. The Shield of the Americas, also known as the Coalition of the Americas Against Cartels, was launched by the Trump administration as a regional security initiative to combat transnational criminal organizations and drug trafficking. Secretary of State Marco Rubio praised the emergence of regional leaders committed to fighting transnational terrorism.