Cairo, Egypt – NBC News revealed that US military officials have prepared plans to launch military strikes targeting drug traffickers inside Venezuela. Operations are likely to begin within weeks. Sources indicated that US President Donald Trump has not yet given the green light. Communication between Washington and Caracas is taking place through intermediaries from the Middle East.
Angry Venezuelan response at the United Nations
In contrast, Venezuelan Foreign Minister Ivan Gil Pinto, addressing the UN General Assembly, called for international solidarity against what he described as a “brutal and immoral threat” from the United States. He asserted that Washington was “fabricating lies” to justify the war. He added, “We thank the peoples of the world, including the American people, for condemning this attempt.”
US military movements
Trump deployed eight warships and a nuclear submarine to the southern Caribbean as part of a declared campaign to combat drug trafficking. In recent weeks, US forces destroyed three boats suspected of being used for smuggling, resulting in the deaths of more than 12 people, in a move the United Nations described as “extrajudicial executions.”
Ignoring calls for dialogue
Despite Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s call for dialogue, Washington rejected the offer, asserting that it does not recognize his legitimacy and accusing him of electoral fraud. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio also described Maduro as a “fugitive from justice” on the back of US indictments in drug trafficking cases.
