Leman Pasquale/EPA/ShutterstockUS President Donald Trump has renewed his accusation that Venezuela is sending gang members and drugs to the United States, which he said was “not acceptable”.
Tension has been high between the two countries since the US deployed warships to the Southern Caribbean on what officials said were counter-narcotics operations.
As part of that deployment, the US launched an attack on a boat said to be carrying drugs from Venezuela, killing all 11 people on board.
Asked by a journalist on Sunday whether the US would now “start doing strikes on mainland Venezuela”, Trump answered: “We’ll see what happens.”
Speaking to reporters in New Jersey, the president said Venezuela was “sending us their gang members, their drug dealers and drugs”.
He said that maritime traffic in the Southern Caribbean had reduced significantly “since the first strike”.
Experts raised questions about legality of the 2 September attack on the alleged drug boat, saying that it may have violated international law.
Venezuela responded by flying two F-16 fighter jets over a US Navy destroyer two days later.
That led Trump to warn that any Venezuelan jets putting “us in a dangerous situation” would be shot down.
After a brief lull, tension rose again on Saturday when Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yván Gil accused US forces of boarding a Venezuelan vessel.
Gil said the vessel, which he described as “small, harmless” fishing boat, was seized “illegally and hostilely” for eight hours.
Venezuela Ministry of InformationIn a statement, the Venezuelan foreign ministry alleged that those who ordered the seizure were “looking for an incident to justify escalating war in the Caribbean, with the aim of regime change” in Caracas.
The US, and many other nations including the UK, have not recognised the re-election of Nicolás Maduro in July 2024, pointing to evidence gathered by the opposition with the help of independent observers showing that his rival, Edmundo González, had won the election by a landslide.
US officials have also accused Maduro of leading a drug cartel called the Cartel of the Suns and are offering a reward of $50m (£37m) for information leading to his capture.
Maduro has denied the allegations and has accused the US of an “imperialist move” to depose him.
He has called on Venezuelans to enlist in the militia, a force made up of civilians which in the past has been used mainly to boost numbers at political rallies and parades.
Public sector workers have reported being pressured into joining the militia.
