ARGENTINA · SECURITY
Key Facts
- The country Argentina is one of South America’s largest economies, led by libertarian President Javier Milei, a close political ally of US President Donald Trump.
- What happened A joint ministry order put five groups on the Argentina terror list: Sinaloa, La Nueva Familia Michoacana, the ELN, the FARC-EP and Los Tiguerones.
- The US link Both Mexican gangs have been on the US foreign terrorist list since February 2025, so Argentina now matches Washington.
- The reason Argentina rates the groups a real or potential external threat to national security, based on reserved intelligence analysis.
- The catch No Sinaloa or Michoacana operation in Argentina is named in the public record, and a Mexican researcher quoted by Infobae points to no documented presence.
- Prediction markets Polymarket gives Javier Milei a 48.5% chance of winning Argentina’s next presidential election (22 October, 10:37 a.m. ET).
- Power Index Argentina ranks 4th of 14 in The Rio Times Latin America Power Index, with 61.2 points (October 2026 edition).
The Argentina terror list now includes the Sinaloa Cartel and La Nueva Familia Michoacana, two Mexican gangs that Washington already treats as terrorist organizations. The government announced the step on Wednesday 21 October 2026, and the order appeared in the official gazette on Thursday 22 October.
For US readers the Argentina terror list shows Buenos Aires following Washington’s cartel campaign, as Costa Rica did with nine groups. Three groups from Colombia and Ecuador joined the list in the same order.
How the Argentina Terror List Grew
Joint Resolution 5-2026 came from the Security Ministry and the Foreign Ministry, and it was published in the Boletín Oficial, the official gazette. It finds that five groups qualify for the RePET, the public registry that forms the Argentina terror list.
The presidency announced the listing in a statement on Wednesday 21 October, which MDZ says came while President Milei was in Madrid. Mexican magazine Proceso reports that Security Minister Alejandra Monteoliva and Foreign Minister Pablo Quirno signed the order.
The Five Groups on the List
The Sinaloa Cartel is a Mexican network that the government calls transnational, active in drug smuggling, extortion and kidnapping for ransom. La Nueva Familia Michoacana is a Mexican gang accused of international drug trafficking and illegal mining, with what the statement calls an alarming regional expansion.
Colombia’s ELN is a guerrilla group that never signed a peace deal and remains armed. The FARC-EP name is now carried by a dissident faction that rejected the 2016 peace agreement, after the main FARC became a political party.
Los Tiguerones is an Ecuadorian gang that split from Los Choneros in 2020 and is tied to drug trafficking and contract killings. The presidency statement, as MDZ reports it, says Argentina listed Los Choneros as terrorists in August.
Why Argentina Is Following Washington
The United States designated the Sinaloa Cartel and La Nueva Familia Michoacana as foreign terrorist organizations in February 2025, along with four other Mexican groups. Since then Argentina added the Cártel de los Soles in August 2025 and the Jalisco New Generation Cartel on 26 March 2026.
Argentina also belongs to the Shield of the Americas, a US-led regional pact against drug trafficking, according to MDZ and Infobae. Mike Vigil, a former chief of international operations at the US Drug Enforcement Administration, says in Infobae that the decision follows from that pact.
Proceso reports that Washington announced a regional anti-narcotics unit in Argentina in early October, with more than US$13 million in funding. The wider picture of US listings is in our guide to 21 Latin American groups on US terror lists.
What Prediction Markets Say
On Polymarket, an online prediction market, bettors give Javier Milei a 48.5% chance of winning Argentina’s next presidential election (22 October, 10:37 a.m. ET). Opposition figure Axel Kicillof stands at 32.5% in the same market.
A separate market on whether Milei leaves office before 2027 shows a 3.5% chance at the same time. Both are bets, not polls, and neither price shows a clear reaction to the terror-list order.
Why we show this: prediction markets turn real-money bets into a live probability that moves within minutes of the news, which is why investors, campaigns and newsrooms in the United States now follow them closely. We show them next to polls and official results, never instead of them.
What It Means for US Readers
The Argentina terror list now matches Washington’s on the two Mexican gangs, which makes it easier for US and Argentine agencies to exchange information. The government says the registry is meant to ease information sharing with other states and international bodies and to help detect financing early.
Banks and companies working in Argentina have one more list to screen, and the Argentina terror list is public. When it listed the Jalisco cartel in March, the presidency said registry entry allows financial sanctions and operational restrictions.
Vigil says in Infobae that such listings mainly allow frozen bank accounts, a power the US has held over foreign drug lords since 1999. He describes the wider push as an effort to keep governments friendly to Washington in Latin America.
What Is Not Known
The official statement names no Sinaloa or La Nueva Familia Michoacana operation in Argentina, and the intelligence analysis behind the order is reserved. Víctor Sánchez Valdés, a researcher at Mexico’s Autonomous University of Coahuila, is quoted by Infobae on the lack of any documented Michoacana presence in Argentina.
It is not yet known whether the Argentina terror list will lead to a frozen account. The statement does not say which agency will enforce it.
More: Argentina news in English, every day from The Rio Times.
Frequently Asked Questions
What did Argentina do on 21 and 22 October 2026?
Argentina put the Sinaloa Cartel, La Nueva Familia Michoacana, the ELN, the FARC-EP and Los Tiguerones on its terror list. The order was announced on 21 October and published in the official gazette on 22 October.
What is the Argentina terror list?
It is the RePET, a public registry of people and entities linked to terrorism and its financing. Entry lets the state share information and screen for financing, and the government says it supports early detection of risks.
Does the Argentina terror list match the US list?
On the Sinaloa Cartel and La Nueva Familia Michoacana it does, since Washington has listed both as foreign terrorist organizations since February 2025. Argentina also listed the Cártel de los Soles in August 2025 and the Jalisco cartel in March 2026.
Are the Mexican cartels known to operate in Argentina?
The public record names no Sinaloa or Michoacana operation in Argentina, and the government cites reserved intelligence reports. Infobae quotes a Mexican researcher who points to the lack of any documented Michoacana presence there.
Does this change anything for US travellers or businesses?
No US rule changes, since this is an Argentine decision. Banks and firms dealing in Argentina may need to screen against one more list.
Sources: Argentina.gob.ar (Presidency of the Nation), 22 October 2026; MDZ, 21 October 2026; Proceso, 22 October 2026; Infobae, 22 October 2026; López-Dóriga Digital, 22 October 2026; Argentina.gob.ar (Presidency of the Nation), 26 March 2026.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief
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