The government of President of the United States, Donald Trump, authorized the country’s intelligence agency (CIA) to carry out covert actions in Venezuela, according to American officials told The New York Times.
According to the report published this Wednesday (15) by the American newspaper, the new authorization would allow the CIA to carry out “lethal” operations in Venezuela and conduct a series of actions in the Caribbean.
NYT sources reported that the agency could carry out secret actions against dictator Nicolás Maduro or members of his government “unilaterally or in conjunction with a larger military operation”.
“The deployment comes at a time when the U.S. military is planning its own possible escalation, drafting options for President Trump to consider, including strikes inside Venezuela,” the newspaper added.
The Trump administration began a military operation in the Caribbean Sea at the end of August, sending eight warships and a nuclear submarine to the waters close to Venezuela, with the aim of preventing drugs from reaching American territory.
The US also sent F-35 fighter jets to an airfield in Puerto Rico to carry out operations against drug cartels in the Caribbean.
Since then, American forces have carried out several attacks on boats in the Caribbean Sea, alleging that they were transporting drugs belonging to Venezuelan gangs, an attack that has killed 27 drug traffickers, according to the White House.
The UN and international NGOs question the legality of these attacks on vessels. The Venezuelan dictatorship considers such an operation an “excuse” for military intervention in the South American country.
