The United States has deployed warships to the southern Caribbean in an operation aimed at countering drug trafficking, escalating tensions with Venezuela without signaling any plans for invasion.
Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro condemned the move Monday in Caracas, calling it “the greatest threat that has been seen on our continent in the last 100 years.” He described the presence of “eight military ships with 1,200 missiles and a submarine targeting Venezuela” as a provocation. One of the vessels, a guided missile cruiser, was observed transiting the Panama Canal from the Pacific to the Caribbean on Friday night.
Maduro announced that Venezuela has declared “maximum readiness” to defend itself, with more than eight million citizens enlisted as reservists and increased patrols of territorial waters. Known for his fiery rhetoric, Maduro accused U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio of trying to draw the country into a “bloodbath… with a massacre against the people of Venezuela.”
The U.S. has also doubled its bounty for Maduro’s capture to $50 million, citing allegations of drug trafficking. His 2018 and 2024 re-elections were not recognized by Washington or much of the international community due to concerns over fraud and voter suppression.
Despite the tension, the U.S. military deployment received a cautious welcome from Guyana. President Irfaan Ali described it as “anything to eliminate any threat to our security.” Guyana and Venezuela are locked in a long-running dispute over the oil-rich Essequibo region, which accounts for two-thirds of Guyana’s territory.
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The U.S. has stressed that its naval presence is part of an anti-drug trafficking operation, not an invasion threat, even as Maduro frames it as an existential military challenge. Analysts note that the Caribbean region is increasingly fraught with overlapping security, economic, and geopolitical concerns, with the Venezuelan crisis at the center.
The unfolding standoff underscores the volatile mix of regional disputes, international pressure, and domestic politics in Venezuela. While Washington and Caracas remain at odds, neighboring countries like Guyana are closely monitoring developments, balancing concerns about territorial security with the broader implications of U.S.-Venezuelan tensions.
As warships move into the Caribbean, the eyes of the region—and the world—remain fixed on Venezuela’s response and the potential for escalation in one of Latin America’s most politically sensitive flashpoints.