Secretary of State Marco Rubio addressed the press following a classified congressional hearing on December 16, 2025. He stated that the details of the session could not be disclosed due to its classified nature.
Rubio highlighted ongoing efforts between the State Department and Congress, noting, "It’s, I believe, our 22nd or 23rd bipartisan engagement. We’ll continue to engage with Congress on this." He explained that he would next brief members of the House to provide further updates.
The Secretary described the subject of these briefings as a counter-drug mission aimed at dismantling terrorist organizations operating in the Western Hemisphere. According to Rubio, these groups are responsible for undermining security and harming Americans through violence and drug trafficking.
He said, "We’re headed to the House now to do a similar briefing and provide updates on this counter-drug mission, which is focused on dismantling the infrastructure of these terrorist organizations that are operating in our hemisphere, undermining the security of Americans, threat – killing Americans, poisoning Americans."
Rubio characterized the mission as both successful and ongoing. "And this has been a highly successful mission that’s ongoing and continued, and we’re pleased to be here today to update Congress on how that’s developing and how that’s moving forward," he said. He added that it was at least his fourth or fifth such engagement with Congress on this topic and emphasized that regular updates would continue.
The briefing is part of continued cooperation between executive agencies and lawmakers concerning national security issues related to organized crime and drug trafficking.
