Fighters, nuclear submarines and warships: weapons sent by the US close to Venezuela

Venezuela says it will denounce the US at the UN after Trump confirms CIA operations Thousands of American military personnel, as well as US ships and aircraft, are currently stationed in the Caribbean, as tension between the United States and Venezuela grows. Donald Trump confirmed on Wednesday (15) that he authorized the CIA intelligence agency to conduct “covert operations” inside Venezuela — and said he was considering attacks on drug cartels in the country. ✅ Follow the g1 international news channel on WhatsApp US forces have carried out at least five attacks on boats suspected of transporting drugs in the Caribbean, near the Venezuelan coast, in recent weeks, killing 27 people. The White House claims to be leading an effort to suppress drug trafficking in the region and accuses Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro of leading the Cartel de los Soles, a group classified as a narco-terrorist organization. The destroyer USS Sampson in Panama City, Panama, on September 2, 2025 Anadolu via Getty Images/BBC Speaking in the Oval Office at the White House, Trump said the US “is looking at land operations” as it considers further strikes in the region. According to CBS News, the BBC’s partner in the United States, there are currently around 10,000 American soldiers deployed in the Caribbean, on ships or on land in Puerto Rico. The American Navy has also sent, since August, at least eight warships and a submarine to the vicinity of Venezuela, according to the American press. The destroyer USS Sampson, the amphibious assault ship USS Iwo Jima and the guided-missile destroyer USS Gravely were located in the region. In September, Trump ordered the sending of 10 F-35 jets to Puerto Rico. The fighters have a wingspan of more than 10 meters and can reach a maximum speed of approximately 1953 km/h at altitude. The nuclear-powered submarine USS Newport News and the guided-missile cruiser USS Erie were also sent by the US around the same time. Information was also released about US P-8 reconnaissance aircraft in the Caribbean. The US Navy guided missile destroyer USS Gravely docked in Puerto Rico on September 11, 2025 Getty Images/BBC Escalation between the US and Venezuela The increase in American military capacity in the Caribbean comes at a time of escalation between the United States and Venezuela. Trump has made the fight against drug trafficking a priority and in July signed a secret directive to allow the US military to target Latin American drug cartels which he defines as “terrorist” groups. In the same month, Washington established that there is a “terrorist” organization in Venezuela called the Cartel de los Soles, headed by Maduro and other high-ranking Venezuelan officials, connected to other similarly described groups such as the Tren de Aragua and the Sinaloa Cartel. In early August, the Trump administration increased its reward to $50 million for information leading to Maduro’s capture. In a leaked memo recently sent to US lawmakers, the Trump administration said it had determined its involvement in a “non-international armed conflict” with drug trafficking organizations. In the most recent US attack, on Tuesday (14), six people were killed when a boat was targeted near the Venezuelan coast. On the Truth Social network, Trump stated that “intelligence confirmed that the vessel was trafficking narcotics, was associated with illicit narco-terrorist networks and was transiting through a known drug trafficking corridor.” As with previous attacks, U.S. authorities did not specify which drug trafficking organization they believed was operating the boat, nor who the people on board were. An F-35A jet during a training mission in 2016 Bloomberg via Getty Images/BBC This Wednesday (15), Trump confirmed that he authorized the CIA intelligence agency to conduct “covert operations” inside Venezuela. According to The New York Times, Trump’s authorization would allow the CIA to carry out operations unilaterally or as part of any broader US military activity. It is not yet known whether the CIA is planning operations in Venezuela, or whether these plans are being maintained only as a contingency. Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office alongside FBI Director Kash Patel and Attorney General Pam Bondi, Trump was asked about the New York Times report. “I authorized it for two reasons, actually,” he said. “Number one: they [Venezuela] emptied their prisons and sent [os presos] to the US.” He added: “And the other thing is drugs. We get a lot of drugs coming from Venezuela, and a lot of Venezuelan drugs come in by sea, so you need to look at that, but we’re also going to stop them on land.” The president refused to answer when asked whether authorizing the CIA would allow the agency to overthrow Maduro. (Reporting by Ione Wells and Bernd Debusmann Jr of BBC News)

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