Since even before he retook office, President Donald Trump has repeatedly vowed to take on and defeat the Mexican drug cartels that he holds responsible for the dangerous and deadly cross-border trafficking of illicit narcotics and smuggling of illegal aliens.

In a surprise announcement on Tuesday, it was revealed that the Mexican government had agreed to hand over more than two dozen top cartel leaders to U.S. custody, according to Fox News.

That unexpected development came just days after Mexico's president had expressed her deep opposition to recent reports that Trump had quietly authorized the use of military force against the Mexican cartels, including in sovereign Mexican territory.

Mexican cartel leaders turned over to U.S. custody

The Fox News report noted that at least 26 top cartel leaders in Mexican custody were slated to be extradited to the U.S. on Tuesday, where they will likely face indictment and prosecution for their wide variety of alleged criminal activities.

"Today is the latest example of the Trump administration's historic efforts to dismantle cartels and foreign terrorist organizations," Attorney General Pam Bondi told the outlet. "These 26 men have all played a role in bringing violence and drugs to American shores -- under this Department of Justice, they will face severe consequences for their crimes against this country."

"We are grateful to President Sheinbaum and the Mexican government for their collaboration in this matter," she added.

The transfer was further confirmed by Mexico's attorney general and the Security Ministry, per Fox News, which said that the deal was reached after the U.S. agreed not to seek the death penalty against the cartel leaders, as that form of capital punishment was abolished in Mexico about two decades ago.

This is also the second time since President Trump retook office that Mexico has agreed to extradite cartel leaders to the U.S., as a similar exchange of 29 wanted individuals was conducted in February.

Cartels designated as foreign terrorist organizations, military action authorized

According to Fox News, this deal for Mexico to turn over cartel leaders to the U.S. comes amid ongoing negotiations between the two neighboring nations on a new trade deal and tariffs, not to mention President Trump's ongoing crackdown on border security and illegal immigration.

It further occurred just days after Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum reacted negatively to reports that Trump had authorized the U.S. military to take action, including in Mexican territory, to combat the operations of the criminal cartels, which Trump ordered designated as Foreign Terrorist Organizations on his first day in office.

"We cooperate, we collaborate, but there is not going to be an invasion," Sheinbaum said of potential U.S. military actions in Mexico. "It’s off the table, absolutely off the table."

Yes, but ...

However, according to national security analysis from Politico, President Sheinbaum may have no choice but to begrudgingly accept U.S. military action in her nation against the cartels, including airstrikes against drug facilities or headquarters buildings and raids to capture or kill leaders.

That is because, at least in part, President Trump's designation of the cartels as terrorist organizations grants the military legal cover to conduct operations, to say nothing of the leverage he holds over Sheinbaum in terms of tariffs and trade deal negotiations.

Further, despite some of her public comments of opposition, the two presidents maintain a relatively good relationship with each other, and she is reportedly trying to combat the cartels on her own -- certainly far more so than her predecessor, former President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador -- so, while she may publicly condemn and critique any future U.S. military operations to save face with her people, she may also quietly be thanking Trump and cooperating with his cartel eradication efforts behind the scenes.