US President Donald Trump drastically intensified the United States’ military buildup in the Caribbean this Friday, by sending the Gerald Ford aircraft carrier group to Latin America, a show of force that far exceeds any previous need to combat drug trafficking and represents Washington’s most muscular move in the Latin American region.
“The enhanced presence of U.S. forces in the USSOUTHCOM area of responsibility will enhance the U.S. ability to detect, monitor, and disrupt illicit actors and activities that compromise the security and prosperity of the U.S. homeland and our security in the Western Hemisphere,” Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell published on X.
He did not specify when the carrier would be moving to the region, but until a few days ago, the carrier was traveling through the Strait of Gibraltar and Europe.
The deployment is part of Trump’s military buildup in the Caribbean, which includes eight additional warships, a nuclear submarine and F-35 aircraft. This is likely to increase concern in the region about the Trump administration’s intentions.
US forces have carried out 10 attacks against suspected drug vessels, mainly in the Caribbean, since the beginning of September, killing around 40 people. Although the Pentagon did not provide much information, it said some of the dead were Venezuelans.
The Venezuelan president, , has repeatedly claimed that the US hopes to remove him from power.
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In August, Washington doubled its reward for information leading to Maduro’s arrest to $50 million, accusing him of links to drug trafficking and criminal groups, which Maduro denies.
The buildup of military firepower far surpasses any imaginable requirement for the U.S. military to strike individual drug targets on land or sea.
The Ford, which was commissioned in 2017, is the newest aircraft carrier in the United States and the largest in the world, with more than 5,000 sailors on board.
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The aircraft carrier, which includes a nuclear reactor, can house more than 75 military aircraft, including fighter jets such as the F-18 Super Hornet jets and the E-2 Hawkeye, which can act as an early warning system.
It has an arsenal of missiles, such as the Evolved Sea Sparrow Missile, which are medium-range surface-to-air missiles used to combat drones and aircraft.
