Trump backs tougher action on drug cartels in Mexico and Colombia

(Refiles to fix typo in headline)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -President Donald Trump said on Monday he supports taking aggressive action against drug cartels and narcotics production in Mexico and Colombia but stopped short of announcing any direct U.S. military intervention.

Trump has intensified his campaign against maritime drug trafficking, authorizing more forceful interdiction operations and giving U.S. forces expanded authority to disable or sink vessels suspected of carrying narcotics.

Asked at an event in the Oval Office whether he backed similar ground strikes in Mexico to stem drug trafficking, Trump said: “OK with me, whatever we have to do to stop drugs.”

He later raised the prospect of targeting cocaine laboratories in Colombia.

“Would I knock out those factories? I would be proud to do it personally,” Trump said. “I didn’t say I’m doing it, but I would be proud to do it because we’re going to save millions of lives.”

(Reporting By Andrea Shalal and Jarrett Renshaw; Editing by Leslie Adler, Ross Colvin and Cynthia Osterman)