— They invent a new eternal war. They promised that they would no longer start wars, but they invent a war that we will avoid Maduro said in a speech broadcast on radio and television.
The US took action
Earlier on Friday, Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell announced the dispatch of the Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier strike group, the largest aircraft carrier in the US Navy, to support the fight against drug cartels.
CNN reported that Trump is considering plans to attack factories and drug routes inside Venezuela. Earlier, the US leader admitted that he had authorized secret CIA operations in the South American country.
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What did Nicolas Maduro say about the US?
What actions did the Pentagon take?
What are the accusations against Maduro?
How many attacks have US forces carried out?
Tensions between the US and Venezuela
Since the beginning of September, the US administration has been carrying out attacks on boats that it believes are smuggling drugs. Most of these attacks took place in the Caribbean Sea, and many of the destroyed vessels were said to have sailed from Venezuela.
The US authorities accuse Maduro of leading a criminal group smuggling drugs. The regime in Venezuela describes these accusations as a pretext to try to overthrow Maduro and take control of Venezuela's rich oil deposits.
In his speech Maduro said that the US authorities “are inventing an extravagant, vulgar, criminal and completely false narrative” about his government. He argued that there is no coca leaf or cocaine production in Venezuela and there is little smuggling through the country.
According to AFP, US forces have so far carried out at least 10 attacks on boats that Washington believes were transporting drugs. Nine of these attacks occurred in the Caribbean Sea. In total, at least 43 people died as a result of these strikes.
