On Tuesday, U.S. President Donald Trump announced that American forces carried out a “kinetic” strike on a small boat in the southern Caribbean, allegedly smuggling drugs from Venezuela, resulting in the deaths of 11 people.
In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump shared black-and-white aerial footage of the strike and issued a stark warning: “The strike resulted in 11 terrorists killed in action. No US Forces were harmed in this strike. Please let this serve as notice to anybody even thinking about bringing drugs into the United States of America. BEWARE!”
The incident marks the first known U.S. military attack on alleged drug smugglers since Trump ordered a surge of U.S. naval forces into the Caribbean last month, a move that has already heightened tensions with the government of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
Maduro’s Response and Regional Concerns
In response to the military action, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has deployed additional forces to his country’s coast and warned he would “declare a republic in arms” if the country were to come under attack. Maduro has long accused the U.S. of using drug trafficking as a pretext for plotting regime change.
A declassified National Intelligence Council report from May found that Maduro’s government “probably does not have a policy of cooperating with” the group, but it does provide a “permissive environment” for the gang’s operations.
The attack highlights a shift in U.S. counternarcotics strategy, pairing its agenda with direct military action, a move that could redefine U.S. engagement with Latin America.
