Venezuela deploys warships, drones to coast as US naval squadron nears

Venezuelan Defence Ministry orders naval patrols arsenic US warships sent to waters disconnected country’s seashore to tackle Latin American cause cartels.

Venezuela’s defence curate says subject vessels and drones volition beryllium sent to patrol the country’s coastline amid simmering hostility with the United States aft Washington deployed warships to waters disconnected Venezuela to combat cause trafficking.

In a video connected societal media connected Tuesday, Minister of Defence Vladimir Padrino announced a “significant” drone deployment arsenic good arsenic naval patrols on the country’s Caribbean coast, including “larger vessels further northbound successful our territorial waters”.

The move comes aft Washington past week deployed an amphibious squadron of 3 warships towards Venezuela’s seashore successful what it said was an cognition against Latin American cause cartels.

News agencies reported connected Monday that two much US ships – a guided rocket cruiser and a nuclear-powered fast-attack submarine – had besides been dispatched to the Caribbean, and that immoderate 4,500 US work members, including 2,200 Marines, were portion of the deployment.

The US naval build-up comes aft the medication of US President Donald Trump past week accused Venezuela’s left-wing president, Nicolas Maduro, of being progressive successful cocaine trafficking and moving with cause cartels.

Washington besides announced that it had doubled a reward for the seizure oregon prosecution of Maduro connected cause charges from $25m to $50m. The US is besides offering a reward of $25m for the apprehension oregon prosecution of Venezuelan Minister of the Popular Power for Interior Diosdado Cabello.

US officials person accused Maduro and members of his authorities of heading the Venezuelan cocaine trafficking cartel Cartel de los Soles, which Washington has designated a violent organisation .

Maduro has dismissed the accusations and accused the US of attempting to instigate authorities alteration successful his country.

A Colombian constabulary serviceman walks successful beforehand of a banner offering a reward for accusation starring to the apprehension of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello, successful Villa del Rosario, Norte de Santander Department, Colombia, connected August 23, 2025 [Schneyder Mendoza/AFP]

Military build-up

On Monday, Maduro insisted during a play tv amusement that his country, dissimilar neighbouring Colombia, is “free of coca leafage crops and escaped of cocaine production”.

Maduro, who has besides criticised the US authorities for not addressing the cause depletion wrong its borders, has mobilised hundreds of thousands of section militia members to fortify nationalist information amid the threats from Washington.

Some 15,000 Venezuelan troops person besides been dispatched to the country’s borderline with Colombia to ace down connected transgression groups, including those progressive successful cause trafficking.

In a abstracted announcement connected Tuesday, Defence Minister Padrino said an ongoing cognition successful Venezuela’s northeastern country had resulted successful the dismantling of shipyards wherever criminals intended “to manufacture semisubmersibles and boats to transport drugs by sea” to markets successful Europe and North America.

People motion up during a nationalist enlistment thrust to articulation the civilian militias, called by the authorities of President Nicolas Maduro, astatine a quadrate successful Caracas, Venezuela, connected August 23, 2025 [Ariana Cubillos/AP]

The determination to deploy US warships and unit disconnected Venezuela comes arsenic Trump pushes for utilizing the subject to thwart cartels helium blames for the travel of fentanyl and different illicit drugs into US communities, and for perpetuating unit successful immoderate US cities.

Venezuela’s ngo to the United Nations denounced the US’s “escalation of hostile actions and threats” successful a letter, section media outlet Noticias Venevision reported connected Tuesday.

Referring to the imminent accomplishment of US ships disconnected the coast, Venezuela told the UN that Washington’s actions were “a superior menace to determination bid and security”, portion the beingness of a nuclear-powered onslaught submarine was “a wide enactment of intimidation”.

The missive besides demanded “guarantees” that the US would “not deploy oregon endanger to usage atomic weapons successful the region”, Noticias Venevision reported.

Despite the subject build-up, analysts person downplayed the anticipation of a US penetration oregon US strikes connected Venezuela, portion galore Venezuelan radical person shrugged disconnected the US menace arsenic posturing, the AFP quality bureau reported.

Maduro, who claimed a 3rd word successful bureau pursuing an predetermination successful July 2024, which was described arsenic profoundly flawed, has been successful Trump’s sights ever since the US president’s archetypal term, from 2017 to 2021.

But the US argumentation of maximum unit connected Venezuela, including an ongoing lipid embargo, failed to dislodge Maduro from power.

“I deliberation what we’re seeing represents an effort to make anxiousness successful authorities circles and unit Maduro to negociate something,” International Crisis Group expert Phil Gunson told the AFP regarding the gathering tension.

Source:

Al Jazeera and quality agencies