 "Trump says US will ‘very soon’ target Venezuelan drug traffickers on land. AFP")
US President Donald Trump warned Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro that failing to step down voluntarily could trigger American military intervention, as tensions between Washington and Caracas continue to escalate.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Trump delivered the ultimatum during a hotline call on 22 November, telling Maduro he could take the “easy way or hard way,” offering safe passage to a friendly capital or face direct US action.
His warning was followed by a dramatic public declaration that Venezuela’s airspace should be regarded as “closed in its entirety.” Although Trump has no legal authority to shut down another country’s airspace, the message — directed at airlines, pilots, “drug dealers and human traffickers” — sent shockwaves through the aviation sector. Several carriers swiftly suspended flights to Caracas. Venezuela condemned the remarks as a “colonialist threat” and an “illegal and unjustified aggression.”
Airspace strain and expanding US military posture
The Federal Aviation Administration had already cautioned commercial operators about heightened hazards over Venezuela due to military activity and security risks. Trump’s comments intensified the situation, with his administration presenting the tougher stance as part of a wider crackdown on drug-trafficking networks allegedly linked to Maduro’s government.
In recent months, US forces have carried out more than 20 strikes on boats Washington claims were transporting narcotics, resulting in more than 80 deaths. However, officials have released no evidence that the vessels carried drugs, prompting questions over the legality and intent of the operations. Venezuelan authorities insist the campaign is aimed not at cartels but at unseating Maduro.
The deployment of the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford and accompanying assets to the Caribbean underscores Washington’s readiness to escalate. Trump has hinted that land-based operations inside Venezuela could begin “soon,” indicating that the threat of force may be moving beyond rhetoric.
Venezuela pushes back
Venezuela’s foreign ministry denounced Trump’s comments as hostile and destabilising, accusing Washington of attempting to engineer regime change under the guise of counter-narcotics efforts. Maduro — whose 2024 re-election was rejected by much of the international community as fraudulent — remains defiant, portraying the standoff as part of Venezuela’s long struggle against US interventionism.
The US designation of the so-called “Cartel de los Soles,” which Washington alleges includes senior military officials and Maduro himself, as a foreign terrorist organisation has widened the legal and operational latitude available to American agencies. For Caracas, it represents an unprecedented step towards justifying direct intervention.
The confrontation deepened further in November when Trump designated the entire Venezuelan government a terrorist entity, effectively severing the last remaining diplomatic channels.