Venezuela has announced a “massive mobilization” of its military in response to the increased U.S. military presence in the Caribbean Sea.
Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino López said Tuesday that Venezuelan military and reserve forces would carry out training exercises through Wednesday in response to the “imperialist threat” from the United States, according to CNN. Padrino López said that the order to put Venezuela on a war footing came from Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.
The military buildup in Venezuela comes as the United States’ largest warship, the USS Gerald R. Ford, and the rest of its carrier group entered the US Southern Command region. War Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered the aircraft carrier to the Caribbean Sea last month to join U.S. forces policing international waters off Venezuela’s shores.
“The enhanced U.S. force presence in the SOUTHCOM AOR will bolster U.S. capacity to detect, monitor, and disrupt illicit actors and activities that compromise the safety and prosperity of the United States homeland,” Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said, according to the Miami Herald. “These forces will enhance and augment existing capabilities to disrupt narcotics trafficking and degrade and dismantle TCOs.”
Last week, Russian-made anti-aircraft systems were seen inside the La Carlota military airport in Caracas. The Buk-M2E missile systems were tagged after Maduro sent out requests to Russia and China for aid against a possible attack from the United States.
In addition to the systems seen at La Carlota, a slew of anti-air missile defense systems have been spotted being placed across Venezuela.
Tensions between Caracas and Washington have soared since President Donald Trump took office over Venezuela’s ties to the international drug trade and the trafficking of drugs into the United States. In response, Trump has moved warships into the southern Caribbean Sea to target suspected drug boats and subs.
The White House has also targeted Maduro personally. Trump said last month that he has approved CIA operations against Maduro in Venezuela, suggesting that the White House wants regime change in Caracas. Trump has also weighed whether to expand U.S. strikes against the drug trade to Venezuelan soil.