US plans ground operation against Venezuela, says Trump

The United States government has warned that it will soon act on land in Venezuelan territory under the justification of combating drug trafficking. This Thursday (27), in a call to military personnel on the occasion of Thanksgiving, US President Donald Trump said: “You’ve probably realized that people no longer want to hand over [droga] by sea, and we will begin to stop them by land. Furthermore, it’s easier on land, and that will start very soon. We warn them to stop sending poison to our country.”

Trump did not detail what the land actions would be like, but recalled recent attacks in the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific — since September 1, according to him, US forces have destroyed around 20 vessels allegedly linked to drug trafficking, in operations that would have caused more than 80 deaths.

In response, the Venezuelan government led by Nicolás Maduro mobilized the local Air Force, calling on its troops to be “alert, ready and willing” to defend national sovereignty. The request was made during a military ceremony at the Maracay Air Base, in Aragua, where troops carried out a simulation exercise involving the interception of a plane and invading troops. “I ask that you always remain imperturbable in your serenity, alert, ready and willing to defend our rights as a nation, as a free and sovereign homeland, and I know that you will never fail Venezuela, I know that Venezuela is counting on you,” declared Maduro.

On the same day, US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth’s visit to the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford — the largest military ship in the world, with around 4,000 soldiers and 75 fighters on board — reinforced the climate of military escalation between the two countries.

The hardening of rhetoric and movements in the military and diplomatic spheres raise the alarm for a possible US intervention against Venezuela, which has already provoked official reactions from Caracas and international concern for the entire region.