Trump administration mulls plans to target cocaine facilities inside Venezuela

Washington, DC [US], October 25 : The Trump administration is reportedly weighing plans to target drug-trafficking routes and cocaine facilities inside Venezuela, though a final decision has not yet been made, according to CNN.

Signs of a possible military buildup have emerged, with Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth ordering the US Navy's most advanced aircraft carrier strike group, the USS Gerald R. Ford, to move from Europe to the Caribbean. The deployment comes as Washington increases its presence in the region to target drug cartels and related criminal networks.

As per CNN, Trump has also ordered the CIA to conduct covert operations in Venezuela as he continues to target the country, alleging it exports drugs to the US.

Officials said President Trump has authorised the CIA to carry out covert operations in Venezuela, though diplomacy remains an option. "There are plans on the table that the President is considering," one official said, CNN quoted, adding that Trump "hasn't ruled out diplomacy." Another official confirmed that multiple proposals are under review, focusing mainly on targeting drug activity within Venezuela, as per CNN.

In recent weeks, the US military has intensified operations against drug-smuggling boats in international waters. Hegseth said a strike in the Caribbean overnight destroyed one vessel and killed six people, bringing the total number of boats targeted to 10 and deaths to 43 since the US began targeting Venezuelan boats last month.

More than 4,500 Marines and sailors, backed by naval and air assets, have been stationed in the Caribbean to strengthen anti-narcotics efforts and demonstrate US military strength in the area.

While Venezuela itself does not produce cocaine, coca crops are primarily found in Colombia, Peru, and Bolivia. US officials argue that major trafficking routes pass through the country. Maduro was charged in the US in 2020 on federal drug-trafficking offences, and Washington has often accused him of aiding narcotics networks.

"Nicolas Maduro is an indicted drug trafficker in the United States, and he's a fugitive of American justice," US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on a trip to Ecuador in September.

Meanwhile, when asked whether he would seek congressional approval for possible strikes, Trump on Thursday hinted he might continue attacks on traffickers without declaring war. "I'm not going to ask for a declaration of war," he said. "We're just going to kill people that are bringing drugs into our country. They're going to be dead."

Pentagon Press Secretary Sean Parnell said the movement of the Gerald R. Ford strike group and its aircraft wing was aimed at dismantling transnational criminal organisations and countering narco-terrorism. The carrier had been docked near Split, Croatia, on October 21 and is expected to take several days to reach the Caribbean.

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