A call between Donald Trump and Nicolás Maduro? The prospect is on the table, despite growing tensions between the United States and Venezuela. The Republican informed his team of his intention to speak directly with the Venezuelan leader, according to the Axios news site. The report came on the same day that Washington officially designated Maduro as the head of a foreign terrorist organization, amid rising tensions in the Caribbean.
So far, no precise date has been set for the conversation, according to the same sources.
Trump’s idea could suggest that despite the deployment of US military power in the Caribbean, no direct US action on Venezuelan territory is expected for now or at least would be delayed. US military intervention in Venezuela has been feared since the first warships began arriving in the area.
“No one is going to go in and shoot Maduro or kidnap him at this point. I wouldn’t say never, but that’s not the plan right now,” an anonymous senior official told the media. “In the meantime we will blow up the boats carrying drugs. We will stop the drug trafficking.”
The US operation, called Operation Southern Spear, has sunk at least 21 ships since September 2, killing at least 83 people in attacks that experts, lawmakers and human rights advocates consider to be extrajudicial killings and unlawful acts.
News of a possible Trump phone call with Maduro came after the US president designated the so-called Cartel of the Suns a foreign terrorist organization, a move that took effect on Monday. The designation includes corrupt Venezuelan officials and military personnel who profit from drug trafficking ties and profits. According to Washington, the inclusion of a group allegedly led by Maduro in the list of foreign terrorist organizations provides the Trump administration with the prerequisites for a new phase of military actions in or near Venezuelan territory.
The top US military officer, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine, also traveled to Puerto Rico on Monday to meet with soldiers and officers from the Southern Command, responsible for US military operations in Latin America. Most of the approximately 15,000 soldiers mobilized for Operation Southern Spear are believed to be stationed on that island. Caine will also travel to Trinidad and Tobago on Tuesday, according to the Port of Spain government.
Without excluding the possible start of a second phase of this operation, Trump himself has also raised the possibility of negotiations with Venezuela which could resolve the issue through diplomatic channels.
Eight days ago, coinciding with the arrival of the aircraft carrier in the area USS Gerald Fordthe world’s largest, Trump said: “We might have some discussion with Maduro and we’ll see how it turns out. They would like to talk.” Trump, who made the statement to reporters in West Palm Beach, Florida, before boarding his flight back to Washington, provided no further details.
Last week, The New York Times reported that Trump had authorized covert CIA operations in Venezuela. At the same time, however, a long-closed communication channel between the two countries was reopened. Through this channel Maduro had offered to resign within a couple of years. This delay, however, was categorically rejected by the United States, according to the newspaper.
A Trump adviser quoted by Axios said: “I see a diplomatic solution as very likely.” “Donald Trump didn’t say it in as many words, but he wants his legacy to be that he did everything he could to stem the flow of illegal drugs into this country,” the adviser added.
In the first months of Trump’s mandate, the White House envoy for Venezuela, Richard Grenell, took some steps in this direction. The diplomat established contacts with the Chavista regime and also traveled to Caracas for talks that led to the release of six Americans detained in the South American country and the Maduro government’s agreement to accept repatriation flights for citizens deported from the United States.
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