WASHINGTON (AP) — Pentagon budget cuts will dramatically slash U.S. efforts to seize illegal drug shipments at sea, the top U.S. commander in South America told senators Tuesday, saying that the number of ships at his disposal for counter-drug operations will drop from about six to possibly zero.

Gen. John Kelly, head of U.S. Southern Command, said that U.S. forces seized 150 to 200 tons of cocaine during operations on the high seas last year. But he told the Senate Armed Services Committee that if the budget cuts stand, “Next year all of that will make its way ashore and into the United States.”