US President Donald Trump confirmed he had authorised the CIA to conduct covert operations inside Venezuela. He said the US was facing threats owing to illegal migration and drug trafficking from Venezuela. The move comes amid a major US military build-up in the Caribbean, with warships, one submarine, and fighter jets deployed. Washington says the deployment is to target drug cartels, but experts warn they risk escalating into a confrontation with President Nicolás Maduro’s government. Maduro, accused by the US of leading a drug cartel, denies the allegations, condemns alleged CIA-backed regime change, and has mobilised troops as tensions rise over a potential new conflict in Latin America.
