The United States Detrimental Effect in the

Colombian Drug War

Donavan Segelhorst

Pablo Escobar, once the kingpin of the Medellín Cartel, is known widely as one of the world's
most notorious narco-terrorists. During his reign, he was the root of thousands of killings of Colombian
citizens and contributed significantly to the growth of the Colombian Civil War. The Medellín cartel
began as what was called​ Death to Kidnappers​ after communist guerrillas kidnapped Marta Ochoa, a
sister of two drug brothers. It was an alliance between many notable kingpins and grew into a larger
organization called the Medellín Cartel. At its height in 1980, the Medellín Cartel owned 96% of all the
cocaine coming to the United States, a country that began to see the death and drug rate soar and
decided to take action by attempting to take part in the drug war happening in Colombia.1 The people of
the United States were aware of Pablo Escobar and his reign of violence, and there was an exceptional
uproar in American society to both take down the infamous murderer, giving assistance to the innocent
people of Colombia while also protecting the streets of the United States. Between the 1970s and
1990s, the United States helped Colombia by introducing a variety of aid such as equipment, money, and
soldiers into the country and putting forth massive operations against the cartels and the drug flow in
Colombia. Although it would be simple to assume that these actions were of benefit to both Colombia
and the United States, the United States involvement in the Colombian drug war not only resulted in
more cocaine exportation, but it increased tensions in Colombia's ever-growing civil war.
During the 1970s, the drug flow in the United States had already become a massive crisis.
President Richard Nixon formally created an organization, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA),
2
to fight the drug flow. The Medellín and Cali Cartels of Colombia were the prominent targets for the
DEA, eventually causing significant increases in the agencies funding, leading to more operations against
the cartels, specials agents being sent into the heart of the drug problem, and other interventions. In
1988, near the end of the Medellín Cartel, Javier Peña, a DEA agent born in Texas, was sent to track
3
Pablo Escobar and establish connections with the Colombian police. Peña was joined by a fellow DEA
agent, Stephen Murphy, who was transferred in 1991 to Bogota, Colombia, to help track Escobar as well.
4
They both worked in a particular unit of the Colombian military called the Search Bloc, explicitly
targeting cartel hotspots in ways to bring down the kingpins.
While the Search Bloc worked on ways to capture Escobar, the DEA expanded its operations in
the United States. In 1991, George H.W. Bush signed a bill expanding DEA authority to seize an unlimited

1
Serena, Katie. “How Pablo Escobar's Medell​í​n Cartel Became The Most Ruthless In History.” All That's Interesting,
All That's Interesting, 7 Dec. 2018, https://allthatsinteresting.com/medell​í​n-cartel.
2
“History.” Drug Enforcement Administration. Accessed November 17, 2019. https://www.dea.gov/history.
3
​Redd, Wyatt. “The True Story Of The Fearless 'Narcos' Agent Who Helped Take Down Pablo Escobar.” All That's
Interesting. All That's Interesting, December 7, 2018. https://allthatsinteresting.com/javier-pena.
4
​“Steve Murphy.” Biography.com. A&E Networks Television, July 19, 2019.
https://www.biography.com/law-figure/steve-murphy.
 5
amount of money from cartels excluding real estate allowing the DEA to run some of the most
significant missions of the agency’s existence. In November 1991, the DEA destroyed two primary
distribution cells of the Cali kingpin leader in New York City6 which slowed the ability of the cartels to
distribute such substantial amounts of cocaine throughout the United States. In September 1992,
7
undercover agents met with high ranking Cali financial managers and arrested them. The arrests of
these managers disrupted the information flow through the cartel, making it more difficult for the
kingpins to know the movements of their illicit drug money. The aviation section of the DEA increased in
size, allowing for the fumigation of drug fields to occur. In Late 1991, the DEA aviation section grew to
115 special agents/pilots, 100 DEA owned aircraft, 152 contractor maintenance technicians, and an
8
increased aviation budget of $23 million. With the increase in the aviation section of the DEA, and
fumigation of drug fields in Colombia, cartels were starting to see the United States’ potential when it
came to fighting this drug war.
Pablo Escobar was incredibly violent within his own country and was one of the major targets of
the drug war. The president knew that Escobar would be willing to surrender after shaking Colombia to
its core, but at a price of dignity to the country. The Colombian president, César Gaviria, had peace talks
with Escobar which entailed provisions that Escobar destroy his laboratories, dismantle his organization,
and discontinue all production of cocaine. In return, Escobar would not be extradited to the United
9
States, all the trials would be held in Colombia, and his family would be allowed to keep the wealth.
This was a minor victory in Gaviria's eyes, but the United States saw it as a major defeat. If President
Gaviria gave in to Escobar’s demands, he would seem weak to the rest of the world, however, he
realized that it would finally bring peace to the streets of Colombia. For the United States, it was clear
that Escobar was getting away with his crimes. Additionally, Pablo Escobar was allowed to build and
monitor his own prison, with a staff of his choosing. Government officials were not allowed to go within
two miles of the site. Escobar stayed at the prison for over a year, until it was discovered that he was
running the Medellín cartel the entire time during his sentence. The Colombian government ordered a
raid on the prison with the intent to transport him to a more secure location. Before they could do that,
he escaped. Escobar knew he would be killed or captured hiding in Colombia and figured he needed a
better location to stay concealed. The solution came in the form of the Panamanian dictator, Manuel
Noreiga. He harbored most Medellín cartel members when they were being hunted by the Colombian
10
government. The United States government saw evidence that Noriega also was a criminal, and felt he
was not fit to lead the country which lead an invasion of Panama in an operation called Just Cause
11
which captured Noriega. He was tried as a drug trafficker, and was sent to prison for forty years.

Politically, narcoterrorism was a key issue in the United States in the 1980s and 1990s; the
government could not afford to have a mass killer like Escobar on the loose, proving that criminals could

5
Drug Enforcement Administration​, History,​ 1990-1994
6
Drug Enforcement Administration​, History,​ 1990-1994
7
​ ibid
8
Drug Enforcement Administration​, History,​ 1990-1994
9
​“Pablo Escobar Part 8 of 8.” FBI. FBI, March 2, 2011. https://vault.fbi.gov/pablo-escobar/Pablo Escobar Part 8 of
8/view.
10
​ -53
FBI,​ Pablo Escobar Part 8 of 8, 1
11
“The U.S. Invades Panama.” History.com. A&E Television Networks, February 9, 2010.
https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/the-u-s-invades-panama.
escape justice. President George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton both put forward plans to help the citizens
of Colombia. In February of 1990, George H.W. Bush briefly visited in South America to meet with
presidents of Bolivia, Peru, and Colombia. During this meeting, and backed by $2.2 billion in United
12
States aid, George H.W. Bush offered a solution to bring down the cartel system. This suggestion was
the beginning of the major collaboration between the two nations. George H.W. Bush showed that the
United States was very willing to participate in the war against drugs. Ten years later, in 2000, Bill
Clinton flew to Colombia and inaugurated a new campaign called Plan Colombia. This plan was a $7.5
billion strategy formed by Andrés Pastrana to curtail drug production by 50% in five years through a
13
mixed program of military force, crop eradication, and social development. This was the most
prominent plan between the two nations, hoping to find a way to end the drug production and flow that
was going right to the streets of the United States. The collaboration between the two nations, the most
significant since the Escobar era, inspired fear in the drug lords, knowing that they were primary targets.
Over half a billion of a $1.3 billion aid package from the United States would pay for counterdrug
operations in southern Colombia, including over 100 United States advisors to train and equip three new
14
special anti-drug battalions. The new advisors sent to Colombia were specializing units of the
Colombian military, creating more deadly teams against the cartels. These units would later take down
some of the most significant parts of the cartel.
The United States government not only supplied money and soldiers, but also collaborated with
Colombia to find other ways to decrease drug production. Fumigation of drug fields was a noteworthy
part of Plan Colombia. The fumigation done in Colombia in 2001 sparked an increase in as much as 30%
15
in price per kilo of cocaine, ​a victory for the United States, as it demonstrated that the fumigation was
making a difference. Under Plan Colombia, United States contract employees vastly stepped up the
16
aerial eradication of coca plants using herbicides. These fumigations made production a lot more
complicated for drug traffickers. When a drug field was sprayed with pesticides, the quality of
production was ruined because coca leaves covered in pesticides would not be sufficient for use in
manufacturing.
Government interference with the drug trade caused a lot of political and cartel violence, and
chaos within the Colombian public, and the rate Colombia was exporting cocaine continued to increase.
On May 5th, 1990, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) discovered a message from the Medellín
17
Cartel, which planned to kidnap or murder someone from the United States embassy. This violence
showed the repercussions of trying to take down a massive drug ring like the Medellín cartel. During the
Cali cartels’ contribution to the government on supplying information on the whereabouts of Pablo
Escobar, they also used their own violent route to get what they wanted. They offered $3 million to
18
whoever was able to kill Pablo Escobar. The Cali cartel wanted Pablo out, because they knew that he
was the key to their enemy’s existence. If Escobar was gone, the Medellín cartel would crumble, and
they would be able to control the world's cocaine market.

12
​Morrison, David C. "Colombia and Drug Trafficking." Great Decisions, 2002, 45-56.
http://www.jstor.org/stable/43682427.
13
​Morrison, David C.,​ Colombia and Drug Trafficking,​ 45-56
14
ibid
15
​Morrison, David C.,​ Colombia and Drug Trafficking,​ 45-56
16
​Morrison, David C.,​ Colombia and Drug Trafficking,​ 45-56
17
​ -53
​FBI,​ Pablo Escobar Part 8 of 8, 1
18
ibid
 After Pablo Escobar was killed in a shootout with the Colombian government, and both the Cali
and Medellín cartels were dismantled, the drug trafficking from Colombia only got worse. In 2000, 330
19
tons of cocaine were shipped into the United States, and 220 tons were shipped into Europe, ​a
remarkable increase after the death of Escobar. In 2002, Colombian traffickers took to poppy cultivation
20
and supplied most of the heroin used on the east coast. The traffickers realized the addictive potential
as well as the price increase from cocaine in heroin, only leading to more trafficking with other drugs.
Overall, there were some positive impacts of the effort against the Medellín cartel. Near their demise,
the Medellín cartel shipped around 200-500 kilos into the United States per month, less than ten
21
percent of the amount of cocaine that they routinely sent. With drug trafficking being managed by
notable figures, the Colombian and United States government knew whom to look for. Now, with
trafficking being done in small groups, it is more convoluted than ever to find the traffickers and bring
them to justice. Through the 1990s, the cocaine being exported from Colombia exploded, while Peru
and Bolivian exportation of the drug decreased, as demonstrated by this table.

Cocaine exportation throughout the years

1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000

Colombia 39.7 45 50.9 67.2 79.5 101.8 122.5 136.2

Peru 108.8 108.6 115.3 94.4 68.8 51.0 38.7 34.2

Bolivia 47.2 48.1 48.6 48.2 45.8 38.0 21.8 14.6

TOTAL 195.7 201.7 214.8 209.7 194.1 190.8 183.0 185.0

As the drug war ensued in Colombia, Bolivia and Peru both successfully had a decrease in their
cocaine exports at the end of the decade while Colombia’s cocaine exports were booming. The violence
between the cartels and the government has decreased since the involvement, but the fight against
cocaine has only become more complex. The purpose of the United States’ involvement in the war was
to entirely cut out drug production and transportation to the United States’ streets. This involvement
inspired terrorism and didn’t terminate any drug production, allowing more cocaine to flow freely
throughout the world, while also making the problem more complex and harder to solve.

19
ibid
20
Morrison, David C., Colombia and Drug Trafficking, 45-56
21
ibid