US President Donald Trump stepped up his threats against Venezuela on Saturday, issuing a stark warning that the country’s airspace should be considered “closed”. After months of deadly US attacks on vessels suspected of smuggling drugs, speculation is rife that Washington could launch a military operation in Venezuela, according to AFP.
Trump’s warning comes days after US aviation authorities advised airlines to take extra care near Venezuela due to rising tensions, prompting several major carriers to suspend flights. He said this week that efforts to stop Venezuela’s drug trade “on the ground” would begin “very soon,” the report said.
“To all airlines, pilots, drug dealers and human traffickers. Please consider the AIRSPACE OVER AND AROUND VENEZUELA TOTALLY CLOSED,” Trump said in a social media post to Truth from his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida.
American action against Venezuela
In recent months, the US has stepped up pressure on Caracas as part of an anti-drug effort targeting drug trafficking that the Trump administration says is orchestrated by the Maduro regime.
The administration has designated Venezuela’s Cartel de los Soles as a foreign terrorist organization, citing the designation as a legal justification for certain operations, while Venezuela says it is a false pretext for intervention. Trump also claims that the cartel is headed by the president of Venezuela.
Read also | Not drugs, oil ‘at the heart’ of US pressure on Venezuela: Colombian president
A Bloomberg report said that as part of Trump’s Venezuela strategy, the US has increased its military presence in the region, deploying an aircraft carrier and warships and sending senior military officials to meet with leaders across the Caribbean.
How Venezuela behaves
Caracas, which saw a significant US military presence in the Caribbean as an effort to oust President Nicolas Maduro, denounced Trump’s warning as a “colonialist threat”. Maduro’s government subsequently banned Turkish Airlines (TK) and five others, namely Iberia (IB), TAP Air Portugal (TP), Avianca (AV), LATAM (LA) and GOL (G3) for “joining actions of state terrorism supported by the United States government”.
It rejected Trump’s “hostile” post and demanded “unreserved respect” for its airspace, a government statement said Saturday, Bloomberg reported.
“Such statements constitute an explicit threat of force. Venezuela will not accept orders, threats or interference from any foreign power,” Maduro’s government said.
Read also | The reason why Venezuela’s Maduro will not step down peacefully
Earlier this week, Maduro called on Venezuelans to “give their lives” to defend the country against “imperialist attacks” if necessary. Despite the growing threats, everyday life continues for most citizens, with the capital bustling in the run-up to Christmas and shoppers flocking to stores for Black Friday deals.
Although tensions are rising and supply problems are sporadic, Venezuela’s state oil industry remains operational. The country is home to a small number of foreign oil companies, including Chevron Corp., which produces about a quarter of the country’s output.
On Saturday, Venezuela’s military conducted exercises along coastal areas, with state television broadcasting images of deployed anti-aircraft guns and other artillery. She warned that airspace disruptions would also suspend repatriation flights of Venezuelan migrants from the United States, a central initiative of the Trump administration.
How many people have died since the operation began?
At least 83 people have died in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean since the anti-drug operation began in September. Washington has not provided evidence that the targeted vessels were involved in drug smuggling or posed a threat to the US, and experts say the attacks amount to extrajudicial killings even if they target known traffickers, AFP reported.
Meanwhile, Trump announced plans to pardon the former Honduran president, who is serving a decades-long US sentence for cocaine trafficking, just two days before the country’s election.
(With input from agencies)
