Tensions between Washington and Caracas have escalated after a large U.S. naval buildup in the Southern Caribbean, which U.S. officials say aims to combat drug cartels in the region. According to a U.S. official, seven warships and one nuclear-powered fast-attack submarine are already present or expected to arrive within a week, a deployment far larger than routine missions.

Venezuela denounced the move, accusing the United States of violating the U.N. Charter, and lodged a formal complaint with Secretary-General António Guterres.

U.S. Deployment And Objectives

The White House said President Donald Trump authorized expanded military action against cartels, designating groups such as Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel and Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua as global terrorist organizations earlier this year. Pentagon officials did not specify the mission but confirmed the USS San Antonio, USS Iwo Jima, and USS Fort Lauderdale are part of the buildup, carrying 4,500 service members, including 2,200 Marines.

The U.S. military has also flown P-8 surveillance aircraft over international waters in the Caribbean. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters the administration is ready to use “every element of American power to stop drugs from flooding into our country.”

Venezuelan Response

President Nicolás Maduro rejected the deployment, saying “our diplomacy isn’t the diplomacy of cannons, of threats, because the world cannot be the world of 100 years ago.” Venezuela’s U.N. envoy Samuel Moncada called the buildup a “massive propaganda operation” designed to justify possible military intervention.

Caracas announced it would deploy 15,000 troops to its western border with Colombia to combat trafficking networks and ordered civil defense groups to hold regular drills. Venezuelan officials warned that the presence of U.S. warships near their territory risks destabilizing the region and undermining sovereignty.