Tensions between the US and Venezuela are still rising. With the arrival of the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford, the world’s largest and most advanced aircraft carrier, in the Caribbean Sea, which yesterday joined dozens of US warships and 15 thousand troops already deployed in the region, the United States appears increasingly ready to attack what the Pentagon calls Operation ‘Southern Spear’ which aims to “defeat and dismantle criminal networks” in line with President Donald Trump’s directives.
Since early September, NBC recalls, at least 80 people have been killed in 20 American attacks on small vessels accused of transporting drugs in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific Ocean. Now the President of the United States is considering a potential broader campaign, which could include ground attack in Venezuela or an attempt to overthrow President Nicolss MaduroCNN notes.
“Army ready to attack”
US Army Secretary Dan Driscoll told CBS about it US military “ready, if requested, to intervene” in Venezuela. “The president and the secretary of war spent a lot of time thinking about the best thing to do for the American people. And I can speak from the military’s perspective, which has a lot of training in the region. We reactivated our jungle schools in Panama. We will be ready to act as the President and the Secretary of War requireDriscoll said.
Options on the table
Among the options for possible military operations in Venezuela that senior US officials illustrated to President Trump, as four informed sources told CNN, were air strikes against military or government facilities in Venezuela and drug trafficking routes. Or a direct attempt to remove Venezuelan President Madurowith many risks and benefits.
After the briefing, the American president will make a decision: “I know what I have to do”. There were two meetings in particular where Trump discussed his goals. The first, a small one on Wednesday, with a small group including Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Dan Caine. The second, the following day, Thursday, with a larger national security team, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other top officials who met with Trump in the Situation Room. According to CNN sources, during the meeting Trump was careful about ordering actions that could prove unsuccessful or endanger US troops.
What Trump wants to do
“On one side I’ve made my decisionYes. I mean, I can’t tell you what the decision is, but in a sense I’ve already made that decision,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on Friday. But according to CNN, it’s also possible that Trump decides to cancel any action. The American president, in fact, in October stated that he had authorized the CIA to operate in Venezuela, but last week administration officials made it clear that Washington has no legal justification for an attack on targets on the ground. Furthermore, Trump told CBS that he is not considering an attack in Venezuela, although he previously said that he was open to carrying out attacks on targets on land.
This would involve ”high risks” and ”serious commitments” on the American side, for example, ”regime change in Venezuela,” CNN noted, although ousting Maduro could reward Trump and his team for something many US administrations have failed to achieve. Therefore, if Trump overthrows Maduro, he can boast of important victories: the exit of strongmen and the entry of elected leaders, the possibility of greater collaboration on drug flows and migration, and the potential for oil deals. But if Trump orders an attack in Venezuela, he risks facing fragmented opposition elements and an army ready to rise. In a speech in Caracas, Maduro warned that a US military intervention could lay the foundations for “another Gaza”, “a new Afghanistan” or “another Vietnam”.
