President Donald Trump stated that US military forces have reached a drug -laden boat from Venezuela, highlighting the success of the administration after sending naval vessels to the Caribbean as part of an offensive to combat drug trafficking.
The statement occurs weeks after Washington sent war ships and thousands of troops to the Caribbean to stop drug routes from Latin America. Trump’s lines indicate an intensification of pressure on the Nicolás Maduro government, which accuses the US of planning aggression.
“A few minutes ago, we literally destroyed a boat, a drug -laden boat, lots of drugs on that boat,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Hall. “They have left Venezuela – and they are coming out of Venezuela. Many things are leaving Venezuela. So we destroyed him, and you can see it after this meeting is over.”
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The White House and the Pentagon did not provide details immediately. Shortly after Trump’s pronouncement, Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated on social networks that the “lethal” attack targeted a drug vessel in the southern Caribbean “operated by a designated narcoterrorist organization.”
Venezuela’s dollar titles, which are in Default, reached maximums in the session after the news, with expiration notes by 2031 rising more than one penny to negotiate over 23 cents, their highest levels since February 2019, according to Bloomberg -compiled data.
The Venezuela Ministry of Information did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
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Last month, the Department of Defense announced the sending of more than 4,000 naval sailors and Marines to the waters around Latin America as part of the intensification of Trump’s offensive against drug cartels. On Monday, Maduro accused Rubio of trying to take the US to a massacre with the mobilization.
“Marco Rubio wants to stain his hands with blood, with South American, Caribbean and Venezuelan blood,” Maduro said on Monday, responding to Trump. “Even if they put 10,000 missiles on our heads, Venezuelans will be respected.”
The attack will probably further increase tensions with the Maduro regime, which responded to US reinforcement with its own mobilizations, sending troops and vessels to the borders of Venezuela and the main oil centers. American authorities claim that the target is the Los Soles cartel, a network that, according to them, is led by Venezuelan officials with the support of Maduro.
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The Pentagon sent the amphibian IWO Jima readiness group and the 22nd Expeditionary Marine Unit, forces capable of attacking terrestrial targets, more aggressive posture than coastal guard cutters often used against drug loads.
Military reinforcement, the largest in the region since the invasion of Panama in 1989, divided Latin America. Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, from Brazil, and Gustavo Petro, from Colombia, criticized the measure as a destabilizing, while Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago supported, citing concerns with drug trafficking. China, Russia and Iran condemned the action as interference.
Trump ranked Maduro as a terrorist and earlier this year offered a reward of $ 50 million for his capture. During his first term, he imposed severe sanctions, acknowledged opposition leader Juan Guaidó as interim president of Venezuela and pressed for Maduro’s departure.
