NextFin news, Caracas, Venezuela — On Monday, Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro commanded the deployment of 25,000 members of the Bolivarian National Armed Forces to reinforce border and coastal security. The troops were sent to the border with Colombia and the Caribbean and Atlantic coasts, including the states of Nueva Esparta, Sucre, and Delta Amacuro, to protect national sovereignty and fight drug trafficking, according to official statements and multiple news reports including Latin Times and Saba News Agency.
Defense Minister Wladimir Padrino López announced the troop deployment in a video address from a military bunker, detailing operations in northwestern states bordering Colombia. The military presence includes naval and riverine assets, equipped drones, and strong logistics to block drug trafficking routes, particularly in the Sierra de Perijá mountains and river patrols along the Meta, Capanaparo, Cunaviche, and Cinaruco rivers. Additional reinforcements are concentrated in the Venezuelan Guajira and the Paraguaná Peninsula in Falcón.
The deployment follows a significant escalation in U.S.-Venezuelan tensions. On Tuesday of last week, U.S. forces destroyed a vessel in the southern Caribbean allegedly carrying drugs linked to Venezuelan drug trafficking groups, killing 11 people. U.S. President Donald Trump described the operation as a necessary action against narco-terrorists and vowed further decisive actions in the Caribbean. The U.S. has also deployed a naval fleet including guided-missile destroyers and over 4,000 Marines near Venezuelan waters, alongside a $15 million bounty on Defense Minister Padrino López for alleged drug trafficking facilitation.
President Maduro condemned the U.S. strike as an act of murder and aggression, declaring the armed forces on maximum preparedness to defend Venezuela's sovereignty. He warned that Venezuela would defend itself along every river and coastline and accused the U.S. of using drug trafficking as a pretext for aggression. Maduro also ordered the mobilization of tactical operational rapid response groups in the peace zone with Colombia and coastal areas.
The U.S. military presence near Venezuela includes seven warships, three destroyers, one submarine, and approximately 4,500 troops, including 2,200 Marines, stationed in international waters near Venezuelan territory. Additionally, 10 F-35 fighter jets are deployed at a Puerto Rico airbase. The Pentagon reported that Venezuelan F-16 fighter jets recently flew dangerously close to a U.S. Navy ship, an act the Pentagon called highly provocative.
The heightened military activity and troop deployments come amid ongoing political conflict. The U.S. government does not recognize Maduro as Venezuela's legitimate president, supporting opposition leader Edmundo González instead. The Trump administration has intensified rhetoric and military pressure, citing links between the Maduro regime and drug trafficking cartels, particularly the Tren de Aragua group, which the U.S. has designated a transnational terrorist organization.
Venezuelan officials deny the continued existence of Tren de Aragua, claiming it was dismantled in 2023, and accuse the U.S. of politically motivated accusations. Nonetheless, the situation remains tense, with both countries preparing for potential escalation. Maduro has threatened to mobilize up to 4 million militia members in defense of the regime if attacked.
Regional governments, including Colombia, have expressed concern over the instability along their borders, while Caribbean nations monitor the expanding U.S. military presence. Analysts warn that the confrontation risks escalating into a broader conflict if neither side exercises restraint.
These developments mark the most significant military mobilization in Venezuela in recent years and the most intense U.S. military pressure in the Caribbean since the 1989 invasion of Panama.
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