US-Venezuela Military Tensions Escalate as USS Gerald R Ford Deploys to Latin America

The USS Gerald R Ford aircraft carrier was ordered to deploy nearly three weeks ago.

A US aircraft carrier strike group arrived in Latin America on Tuesday, intensifying a military buildup that Venezuela has cautioned could potentially lead to a full-scale conflict as it announced its own "massive" deployment.

The USS Gerald R Ford, recognized as the world's largest aircraft carrier, entered a zone under the jurisdiction of the US Naval Forces Southern Command, which oversees Latin America and the Caribbean, according to a statement from the command.

The deployment of this vessel was directed almost three weeks prior, with the declared purpose of assisting in counteracting drug trafficking activities in the region.

Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell stated that the carrier's presence "will strengthen US capacity to detect, monitor, and disrupt illicit actors and activities that compromise the safety and prosperity of the United States homeland and our security in the Western Hemisphere."

President Donald Trump's administration is conducting a military operation in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific, deploying naval and air forces as part of an anti-drug offensive.

Caracas suspects that the deployment, which also includes F-35 stealth warplanes sent to Puerto Rico and six US Navy vessels in the Caribbean, is actually disguising a regime change strategy.

President Nicolas Maduro, whose last two reelections were considered fraudulent by Washington and numerous other countries, has accused the Trump administration of "fabricating a war."

"If we as a republic, as a people, go into an armed struggle in order to defend the sacred legacy of the liberators, we're ready to win," Maduro declared on Tuesday.

On November 2, Trump downplayed the likelihood of engaging in war with Venezuela but suggested that Maduro's days—whom he accuses of being involved in drug trafficking—were numbered.

US forces have conducted strikes on approximately 20 vessels in international waters in the region since early September, resulting in at least 76 fatalities, according to US figures.

In response to these strikes, Colombian President Gustavo Petro ordered the suspension of his country's intelligence exchange with Washington on Tuesday, a pause which "will remain in force as long as the missile attacks on boats continue," he announced in a post on X.

The Trump administration claims that the United States is engaged in "armed conflict" with Latin American drug cartels, which it characterizes as "terrorist" groups.

Washington has not provided evidence that the targeted vessels were involved in drug smuggling, and human rights experts argue that these attacks constitute extrajudicial killings even if they target known traffickers.

'Unacceptable'

Venezuela announced on Tuesday what it described as a major, nationwide military deployment to counter the US naval presence near its coastline.

The defense ministry in Caracas mentioned in a statement a "massive deployment" of land, sea, air, river, and missile forces, as well as civilian militia, to counter "imperial threats."

Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino stated that 200,000 troops participated in an exercise, although no military activity was observed in the capital Caracas.

Padrino aimed to reassure Venezuelans that the country was "safeguarded, protected, defended."

"They are murdering defenseless people, whether or not they are drug traffickers, executing them without due process," the minister added regarding the US operation.

Experts have informed AFP that Venezuela, with an undisciplined fighting force and outdated arsenal, would be at a significant disadvantage in a military confrontation with the United States.

On Tuesday, Russia denounced US strikes on boats from Venezuela—a Moscow ally—as "unacceptable."

"This is how, in general, lawless countries act, as well as those who consider themselves above the law," Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stated in televised remarks, questioning what he described as a "pretext of fighting drugs."

Maduro heavily relies on the Kremlin for political and economic support.

US-Russia relations have deteriorated in recent weeks as Trump has expressed frustration with Moscow over the lack of resolution to the Ukraine war.

The United Kingdom, meanwhile, declined to comment on Tuesday regarding a CNN report that it had ceased sharing intelligence with the United States about suspected drug-smuggling vessels in the Caribbean.

A spokesman for Prime Minister Keir Starmer informed reporters in London: "We don't comment on security or intelligence matters."

He emphasized that "the US is our closest partner on defense, security, intelligence," and would not elaborate on reported UK concerns about the strikes.

"Decisions on this are a matter for the US," the spokesman stated.