Venezuela’s government announced a sweeping mobilization of military and civilian militia forces on Monday after the United States moved the USS Gerald R. Ford — the U.S. Navy’s largest aircraft carrier — into the Latin America/Caribbean theater, a deployment Washington says is focused on counter-narcotics operations but which Caracas has decried as a provocation.
Venezuela’s president, Nicolás Maduro, and senior officials characterized the U.S. buildup as a direct threat to Venezuelan sovereignty and ordered what Caracas called a “massive mobilization” of regular forces and the Bolivarian militia. Maduro has repeatedly called for greater militia enrollment in recent weeks and has staged exercises and deployments near border states amid escalating tensions.
The Pentagon says the deployment of Carrier Strike Group 12, centered on the Gerald R. Ford, is intended to bolster efforts against transnational criminal organizations and narcotics trafficking in the Caribbean — part of a broader U.S. campaign that has included strikes on vessels the Pentagon says were involved in drug shipments. U.S. officials have pointed to recent operations in the region as justification for an increased naval presence.
The U.S. anti-narcotics campaign has already provoked deadly and controversial incidents at sea. Reporting indicates U.S. strikes on suspected drug vessels in the Caribbean have resulted in multiple fatalities, a development that has inflamed rhetoric on both sides and intensified regional alarm about the potential for miscalculation.
Diplomatic moves have matched the military activity: the U.S. has expanded pressure on Caracas, including designations and increased rewards related to alleged links between Venezuelan officials and narcotics trafficking , steps that Maduro condemns as part of a campaign to delegitimize his government. Venezuela, for its part, has sought military support and equipment from partners including Russia and has signaled readiness to defend its territory.
Regional reaction has been cautious and divided. Some Latin American leaders and multilateral fora have called for de-escalation and diplomacy, warning that a military spiral could destabilize an already fragile region, while the United States has defended the deployments as lawful efforts to disrupt criminal networks that threaten hemispheric security. Analysts say the deployment is the largest U.S. military presence in the Caribbean in decades and risks heightening tensions with Venezuela and nearby states.
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