President Donald Trump is weighing plans to target cocaine facilities and drug routes inside Venezuela, CNN reported, citing three U.S. officials. The consideration follows weeks of military buildup in the Caribbean, with the USS Gerald R. Ford carrier strike group redeployed to the region and CIA covert operations already authorized.
The U.S. Department of Defense has announced that the USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) and her Carrier Strike Group, consisting of the Arleigh Burke-Class Guided-Missile Destroyers; USS Mahan (DDG-72), USS Winston S. Churchill (DDG-81), and USS Bainbridge (DDG-96), have been… pic.twitter.com/qaXs5l8JVb
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) October 24, 2025
While the United Nations and DEA note that Venezuela is not a major cocaine producer, Trump officials argue that trafficking networks operate through Venezuelan territory.
The administration is framing the effort as part of its broader campaign to weaken Nicolás Maduro, who faces U.S. drug trafficking indictments.
🚨 BREAKING | The Department of War deploys the USS Gerald R. Ford, one of the most powerful aircraft carriers in the world, along with its strike group, to the Southern Command area—covering Latin America and the Caribbean—to dismantle transnational criminal organizations pic.twitter.com/ypoN7wzcW9
— VOZ (@Voz_US) October 24, 2025
Officials said Trump has not ruled out diplomacy but recently cut off talks with Maduro.
The president told CNN he could act without a congressional declaration of war, saying the U.S. will “kill people that are bringing drugs into our country.” The Pentagon claims the buildup aims to “dismantle transnational criminal organizations.”
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TIPP Staff
