The U.S. military buildup around Venezuela is far more extensive than required for counter-drug operations and could be used to seize strategic facilities inside the country, according to an analysis op-ed published by the Washington Examiner.
Columnist Tom Rogan argued on that recent deployments, which include Navy warships, Marine expeditionary forces, F-35 jets, and a submarine, suggest planners are preparing for operations that go beyond interdictions at sea and that military planners now believe the forces assembled are “sufficient to seize and hold key strategic facilities such as ports and airfields on Venezuelan territory.”
U.S. control over those locations, Rogan argued, would allow for the projection of power into Venezuela from defensible positions, putting additional pressure on President Nicolás Maduro. The deployment includes Navy destroyers, a submarine, the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit with 2,200 Marines, Harrier jets, and F-35 fighter aircraft.
The Pentagon has publicly highlighted training that appears to simulate such missions. In late August, the Defense Department reported that special tactics airmen parachuted into the Caribbean Sea with inflatable boats, while others secured an airport in a mock operation. Rogan suggested these scenarios indicate readiness for the aforementioned seizures, which he said would place significant pressure on President Nicolás Maduro.
President Donald Trump has already hinted that operations could expand, telling reporters last week that the U.S. was now considering targeting cartels “by land,” after authorizing lethal strikes on suspected drug-smuggling boats.
Venezuelan Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez claimed on Thursday that five U.S. jets approached the country’s coastline on Thursday, an action he described as “military harassment.” The claim took place a day after President Donald Trump declared cartels as unlawful combatants and said the U.S. is now in a “non-international armed conflict” with them.
Rogan concluded that the scale and cost of the deployment are too significant to be explained solely by counter-narcotics operations. “The U.S. military buildup around Venezuela should no longer be seen through the lens of a purely counter-drug trafficking concern,” said Rogan. “The current deployment structure is just too big, too expensive, and too varied in capabilities for it to be designed for that mission alone.”
Originally published on Latin Times
