Donald Trump expressed his intention during a meeting on the fight against drug cartels, announcing that this would be his next step in the fight against the influx of drugs after the attacks on boats in the Caribbean Sea.
“They come by land now, and now land is an option. I told them that would be next, you know. And we can go to the Senate, we can go to Congress and tell them about it, but I can't imagine they would have any problem with it, Trump said. He later added that he would definitely do it, although he did not intend to seek a formal declaration of war against the cartels.
Although the US president did not specify where he intended to strike, has said in the past that it might carry out attacks against gangs inside Venezuela. Most of the attacks on boats believed to be carrying drugs took place off the country's coast, and the Trump administration accuses the country's leader, Nicolas Maduro, of masterminding drug smuggling. At the same time, Trump denied reports that US forces had redirected B-1 bombers to the area of this country. When later asked whether the planned operations would result in the placement of US troops on the territory of foreign countries, Trump did not answer the question, but mentioned Mexico and Colombia as countries with particular problems.
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What operations is Donald Trump planning?
How did Nicolas Maduro react to Trump's announcements?
What did Maduro say about anti-aircraft weapons?
What countries did Trump mention as having cartel problems?
— Colombia is a drug den and has been like that for a long time. You've got a bad leader there now, a bad guy, a thug, they're producing cocaine on an unprecedented scale and then they sell it to this guy and they can't get away with it for much longer. We won't tolerate this for much longer. Colombia is very bad. Mexico is ruled by cartels, Trump said, noting, however, that he respects Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum. He did not say the same about Colombian President Gustavo Petro, with whom he is in sharp conflict.
The president of Venezuela responds. Significant announcements
Meanwhile, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said on Thursday that his country is ready to defend its sovereignty and peace in the region against the aggression threatened by the United States under the pretext of fighting drug smugglers in the Caribbean region.
— We have an arsenal of no less than five thousand Russian-made Igla-S anti-aircraft missiles that we can use to ensure the peace and security of our nation Maduro said in a nationally televised address to the nation on Wednesday.
“This system is a portable defense weapon to destroy planes, helicopters and drones flying at low altitudes,” Maduro explained.
The President of Venezuela stated that “the Venezuelan armed forces have already practiced its use in defensive battles in the event of a threat to Venezuelan territory from outside.”
“It is part of our strategic system,” Maduro said, referring to the US president's speech.
Maduro appealed to the international community to take action to “avoid armed conflict in the Caribbean and South American region”.
According to the Venezuelan president, this conflict in the Caribbean, “the threat of which hangs over Venezuela, the region and South America, would be the bloodiest war in years.”
