Donald Trump appears to be getting closer to launching his attack on Venezuela. After signaling that a decision had been taken regarding the strategy to be adopted, the US military presence in the Caribbean region was consolidated with the deployment of the USS Gerald R. Ford, the largest aircraft carrier in the world, off the coast of the country, which arrived in the region a few days ago. In addition to what is described as the US Navy’s “deadliest combat platform,” the US has assembled some 15,000 military personnel, along with more than a dozen warships, including cruisers, destroyers, air and missile defense command ships, amphibious assault ships and attack submarines. They also deployed 10 advanced F-35 fighters to Puerto Rico, which has become a US military hub amid increasing focus on the Caribbean. Rear Adm. Paul Lanzilotta, who commands the USS Ford strike group, explained that this would strengthen the deployment of large numbers of warships to “protect our nation’s security and prosperity from narco-terrorism in the Western Hemisphere.”
The Trump administration maintains that the move aims to disrupt the flow of drugs into the United States, but in reality the effort is seen as an escalating pressure tactic against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. Since early September, US strikes have killed at least 80 people in 20 raids on small boats accused of carrying drugs in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific Ocean. Maduro says Washington is “making” war against him, and Caracas recently touted a “massive” mobilization of troops and civilians to defend itself against a possible American attack. Meanwhile Venezuelan opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner, Maria Corina Machado, called for military defiance and underlined that “a decisive moment is approaching”.
Meanwhile, according to a Politico report, the White House is preparing for Maduro’s “day after” for Venezuela, and is evaluating various plans if he succeeds in toppling the regime. As revealed by a US official and two other informed sources, one option being explored is offering Maduro and his close associates safe passage to another country for their exile. “Some Trump administration officials are talking about exile to Türkiye – they explained – Unless they agree to go to Russia or Azerbaijan. Or maybe Cuba.” Another hypothesis is to arrest Maduro and try him in the United States.
There are also discussions about what sanctions should be lifted and when to remove them: some officials view positively the role of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund in Venezuela’s economic reconstruction. And there is even talk of encouraging private security companies, perhaps from other countries, to offer initial protection to the new leadership, if they are close to Washington.
