The President of the United States, Donald Trump, intensified the conflict with Caracas by stating that Nicolás Maduro has "counted days" and that a ground intervention in Venezuela is not off the table.
His statements, made in an interview with journalist Dasha Burns and published this Tuesday by Politico, come at the most tense moment between both governments in over a decade.
When the reporter directly asked him how far he was willing to go to remove Maduro from power, Trump did not hesitate: "His days are numbered." And when Burns insisted on whether a ground invasion could be ruled out, the president replied: "I don't want to confirm it or rule it out."… "Why would I talk about that with Politico, such a hostile publication toward me?"
That brief exchange was enough to raise alarms in the region, especially after Trump himself hinted last week that "very soon we will also begin operations on the ground" against drug trafficking in Venezuelan territory.
Since mid-year, Washington has launched the largest military operation in the Caribbean in two decades. The "Southern Lance" operation has destroyed at least twenty vessels accused of transporting drugs and has resulted in over 80 deaths, whom the United States labels as “narcoterrorists” linked to the Cartel of the Suns, the alleged criminal network that Washington attributes to Maduro's circle.
In parallel, the Pentagon maintains a naval blockade near the Venezuelan coasts and conducts daily reconnaissance flights.
Tension mixes with contradictory signals. In November, Trump and Maduro had a phone conversation, confirmed by both parties, which, according to sources cited by The Washington Post, was "cordial."
The U.S. president admitted that he would like Maduro to resign, but did not set any deadlines or ultimatums. Nonetheless, the White House insists that it does not recognize the legitimacy of the Venezuelan leader.
Caracas quickly responded to the new warning. “We are peace-loving people, but rest assured that we will fight,” stated Jorge Rodríguez, chief negotiator for the chavismo and president of the National Assembly.
From a public event in Caracas, he warned that Venezuela will defend itself against any aggression "by land, air, or sea" and accused the United States of wanting "a war to devastate the country."
The Minister of Defense, Vladimir Padrino López, was even more explicit: the determination to confront the United States is "reinforced with weapons," he said, assuring that the Bolivarian National Armed Force is united in the face of what he termed a "new military aggression from North American imperialism."
While Trump claims that he "knows all the routes" and "all the houses" where, according to him, drugs are produced in Venezuela, the chavismo denounces that Washington is seeking a regime change disguised as an anti-drug fight.
Amid the warlike rhetoric, millions of Venezuelans inside and outside the country watch with anguish as a crisis escalates that has already overflowed the political realm and is dangerously approaching the military field.
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