View of Pentagon Photo: VCG

As the US military continues its campaign targeting alleged drug cartel boats, Dan Caine, chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, is convening a rare meeting of the top military leaders from the 34 countries in the Western Hemisphere next month, according to media reports. A Chinese expert said that the meeting is likely to be a platform for the US to make its demand clear for other nations to align with the US' Western Hemisphere strategy, serving its own interests. 

Citing a statement from the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, ABC News reported that the meeting is set for February 11. It will be the first time that such a meeting has been convened and appears to be focused on improving cooperation against drug trafficking and criminal organizations, per the ABC News report.

Top military leaders from countries, including nations such as Denmark, Britain and France that have territories in the area, have been invited to the gathering in Washington, The New York Times reported on Friday local time.

On Friday, the US also released its 2026 National Defense Strategy, which emphasized the priority of defending America's interests throughout the Western Hemisphere. 

Song Zhongping, a Chinese military affairs expert, told the Global Times on Saturday that the meeting is essentially an implementation of the Administration's Western Hemisphere strategy, also known as the so-called new "Monroe Doctrine."

The core aim of the US in convening such meeting of officials from relevant Western Hemisphere countries - and also inviting representatives from nations like the UK - is likely to assert its dominance in the Western Hemisphere, the expert added.

The meeting was confirmed the same day the US military struck an alleged drug-smuggling boat in the eastern Pacific, marking the first known strike of its kind since the US raid on Venezuela on January 3. Two people were killed in the latest strike and one survived, the US Southern Command claimed on X.

The Pentagon has sunk over 30 alleged drug boats in the Caribbean and the eastern Pacific since September, resulting in more than 110 deaths, the Xinhua News Agency reported. However, the US government has not released any evidence proving that its targets were involved in drug-related activities.

It also comes amid the US military's largest military presence in the Caribbean in decades, the carrying out more than 35 air strikes against drug cartel boats and the Trump administration's focus on Greenland, the report by ABC News noted.

The US' initiative, serving its own interests, may not receive full support from other nations, as countries in the Western Hemisphere would likely weigh their own interests, Song said.