WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s latest counterdrug determination includes India among 24 countries identified as major drug transit or major illicit drug-producing countries while specifically welcoming New Delhi’s efforts to address illicit opium poppy cultivation and strengthen supply-chain integrity.
The Presidential Determination on Major Drug Transit or Major Illicit Drug Producing Countries for Fiscal Year 2027 was submitted to Congress on Sept. 15. The determination says that inclusion on the list does not necessarily reflect a government’s current counterdrug efforts or its level of cooperation with the United States.
Under U.S. law, countries can be included because geographic, commercial, and economic conditions allow drugs or precursor chemicals to transit or be produced, even when governments are pursuing robust narcotics-control and law-enforcement measures.
The 24 countries named are Afghanistan, The Bahamas, Belize, 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.
India Recognized for Counterdrug Cooperation
India’s inclusion on the list comes with specific recognition of its cooperation with the United States.
The determination welcomes Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Indian government’s efforts to address illicit opium poppy cultivation and bolster supply-chain integrity. It also says the administration looks forward to continued cooperation through the U.S.-India Drug Policy Framework.
The language places India among the countries included under the statutory designation while distinguishing it from the four governments — Afghanistan, Bolivia, Burma and Colombia — that the administration separately determined had “failed demonstrably” during the previous 12 months to make substantial efforts to meet their international counternarcotics obligations.
| Category / Statutory Status | Countries Named | Strategic Rationale & Policy Context |
| Major Transit or Producing (Recognized for Cooperation) | India | Listed due to geography; praised for supply-chain integrity, illicit poppy reduction, and U.S.-India Drug Policy cooperation. |
| Failed Demonstrably (Sanctions / Waivers) | Afghanistan, Bolivia, Burma, Colombia | Cited for failing international obligations; U.S. national interest waivers granted for Bolivia, Burma, and Colombia. |
| Increased Pressure (Synthetic & Precursor Focus) | China, Canada, Mexico | China criticized for unregulated precursor export; Canada for clandestine labs; Mexico urged to intensify cartel crackdown. |
| Status Re-evaluations & Regimes | Venezuela, Brazil, Nicaragua | Venezuela’s “failed” tag lifted citing interim steps; Brazil and Nicaragua criticized over gang and regime complicity. |
Four Countries Designated as Having Failed Demonstrably
The administration designated Afghanistan, Bolivia, Burma and Colombia as having failed demonstrably to make substantial efforts to adhere to international counternarcotics agreements and take required counterdrug measures.
The determination says justifications for those designations are included with the submission to Congress. It also states that U.S. assistance to Bolivia, Burma and Colombia is considered vital to U.S. national interests and may therefore continue.
The determination takes a particularly critical view of the drug situation in Burma and Afghanistan. It says Burma has made little discernible effort to crack down on its drug economy and describes the country as the world’s largest source of opium poppy and a major supplier of methamphetamine.
Regarding Afghanistan, the determination says that despite the Taliban’s announced ban on opium poppy cultivation, the country continues to supply drug markets around the world and that the trade likely funds Islamist terrorism.
Canada and Mexico Face Pressure
The determination says Canada and Mexico need to do more to prevent deadly drugs from entering the United States.
Canada is criticized over illicit fentanyl production in clandestine laboratories, the movement of precursor chemicals and synthetic drugs into the United States, and criminal networks operating along the northern border. The administration calls for stronger action to dismantle drug laboratories, improve supply-chain security and disrupt criminal networks and Chinese gangs.
Mexico receives recognition for increased drug seizures, the dismantling of clandestine laboratories and the deployment of additional law-enforcement and military resources along the shared border.
At the same time, the determination says Mexico must take additional action against narcoterrorist organizations, improve supply-chain integrity through greater private-sector participation and increased inspections at ports of entry, and strengthen its security forces.
It also calls for action against public officials accused of aiding and abetting drug cartels.
China Criticized Over Precursor Chemicals
China is also singled out in the determination over the production and export of precursor chemicals used to manufacture synthetic drugs.
The administration describes the People’s Republic of China as the world’s largest producer of many precursor chemicals used in the illicit production of fentanyl, methamphetamine and other synthetic drugs.
The determination acknowledges that China implemented new licensing requirements for companies exporting designated precursor chemicals to North America following a request from Trump.
However, it says traffickers continue to circumvent those controls by using unregulated precursor chemicals. The administration is calling for additional chemicals and substances requested by the United States to be brought under controls.
Venezuela’s Status Changes
The determination also distinguishes between countries currently designated as having failed demonstrably and those whose status has changed.
Trump says Venezuela should no longer be designated as having failed demonstrably to fulfill its drug-control commitments, citing what he describes as positive steps by interim President Delcy Rodríguez.
The determination says the United States expects continued measurable progress from Venezuela’s interim government in dismantling narcoterrorist groups and stopping drug trafficking through the country to the United States.
Bolivia and Colombia
Bolivia remains designated as having failed demonstrably, although the determination points to expanded U.S.-Bolivian cooperation during the past year.
It cites the March 2026 extradition of alleged narcoterrorist Sebastián Marset to the United States as an example of growing law-enforcement cooperation. At the same time, the administration says Bolivia has not yet had sufficient time to reduce coca cultivation and cites continuing corruption as an impediment to investigations and counterdrug efforts.
Trump says he may reconsider Bolivia’s “failed demonstrably” status if the government shows progress in reducing illicit drug production and addressing corruption.
Colombia also remains subject to the designation. The determination says President Abelardo de la Espriella has pledged an aggressive campaign against coca cultivation and cocaine production and says the United States expects Colombia to make progress in coca eradication and dismantling narcoterrorist networks.
The administration says it may consider lifting Colombia’s “failed demonstrably” designation if it makes such progress.
Brazil and Nicaragua Also Criticized
The determination separately criticizes Brazil for what the administration says is a failure to confront the Primeiro Comando da Capital and Comando Vermelho, which it describes as designated foreign terrorist organizations and major contributors to global cocaine flows.
Nicaragua is also criticized. The determination says the Ortega-Murillo regime has failed to take sufficient action against drug trafficking and alleges complicity by regime actors in the drug trade.
Neither Brazil nor Nicaragua is among the four countries designated as having failed demonstrably under the separate statutory provision.
India’s Position in the Determination
India is included among the 24 major drug transit or illicit drug-producing countries, but the administration specifically welcomes Modi’s efforts to address illicit opium poppy cultivation and strengthen supply-chain integrity and expresses an intention to continue cooperation through the U.S.-India Drug Policy Framework.
The determination therefore combines India’s statutory designation with an explicit acknowledgment of bilateral counterdrug cooperation rather than placing India among the four governments separately found to have failed demonstrably during the previous 12 months.
GSV News Service
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