&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "‘Won’t allow invasion by imperialist force’: Venezuela inducts 5,600 troops as tensions with US escalate")
Venezuela seem to be ramping up its army as the United States ramps up pressure on the country, expanding its military presence in the Caribbean over its crackdown against drug boats in the region. The South American nation swore in 5,600 soldiers on Saturday (Dec 7) as President Nicolas Maduro called for stepping up military recruitment. This comes as US President Donald Trump’s administration has deployed a fleet of warships and the world’s largest aircraft carrier in the region.
The US military has carried out deadly strikes on more than 20 vessels allegedly carrying drugs, killing at least 87. Washington has accused Maduro of leading Cartel de los Soles, which it added to its list of Foreign Terrorist Organisation (FTO) last month, claiming that the group works with known outfits like Tren de Aragua and the Sinaloa Cartel to fuel violence and drug trafficking across the region.
Meanwhile, the Venezuelan leader, who has been in power since 2013, has denied the claims. He said that Trump seeks to oust him and seize the country’s oil reserves, adding that Venezuelan citizens and the military will resist any such attempt.
“Under no circumstances will we allow an invasion by an imperialist force,” Colonel Gabriel Rendon said Saturday during a ceremony at Fuerte Tiuna, Venezuela’s largest military complex, in Caracas. As per official records, Venezuela has about 200,000 troops and 200,000 police officers.
Last month, Trump warned that the airspace over and around the country should be treated as closed amid heightened tensions between the two nations. “To all Airlines, Pilots, Drug Dealers, and Human Traffickers,” Trump had posted on his Truth Social platform, “please consider THE AIRSPACE ABOVE AND SURROUNDING VENEZUELA TO BE CLOSED IN ITS ENTIRETY.”
Venezuela called the move a ‘colonialist threat’, and reports suggested that Maduro attempted to contact Trump after his social media decree.
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Earlier, Trump had also suggested that land operations in the country. Reuters reported that the US was set to launch a new phase of operations. The US president said that he will not “rule out” the presence of the US military in the archipelago. The report added that Trump had not made a final decision on the operation at that time.
