The United States has sharply expanded its military presence in the Caribbean as President Donald Trump increases pressure on Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro to step down. Significant naval and air assets—including an aircraft carrier, destroyers, bombers, and drones—have moved near Venezuela, alongside construction activity at military and civilian airfields in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands, according to Will Merrow of the Council on Foreign Relations. While the US has already conducted more than twenty lethal strikes on alleged drug-smuggling boats, legal experts warn that the administration is blurring the line between law enforcement and armed conflict. The purpose of the buildup remains uncertain: it could signal preparations for direct action or simply aim to coerce Maduro. Merrow writes:

U.S. President Donald Trump’s recent call with Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro—during which Trump reportedly pressed Maduro to step down—follows a substantial increase in the U.S. military’s presence in the Caribbean Sea. The United States has positioned military assets that could potentially support an invasion of Venezuela, though it remains unclear whether the Trump administration is considering such a move.

Trump has signaled his intention to escalate beyond the recent maritime attacks on alleged drug boats, however, saying at a cabinet meeting on December 2 that “we’re going to start doing those strikes on land, too. You know, the land is much easier… And we know the routes they take, and we know everything about them. We know where they live.” […]

In recent months, the United States has moved substantial air and naval assets near Venezuela and increased the capacity of military sites on the U.S. territories of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. […]

Those naval assets include the USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier, destroyers, cruisers, amphibious assault ships, and a special forces support ship. A variety of aircraft have also been active in the region, including bombers, fighters, drones, patrol planes, and support aircraft. The Washington Post estimates that ten thousand troops and six thousand sailors have been deployed on U.S. ships active in the region.

Additionally, Reuters reports that the United States appears to be working on new construction at the former Roosevelt Roads Naval Station in Puerto Rico, which closed twenty years ago, and at civilian airports in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. […]

Venezuela is already in the midst of a humanitarian crisis, with nearly eight million people having fled the country since 2014. Meanwhile, war games conducted by the U.S. government during Trump’s first term projected that the overthrow of the Maduro regime could result in “chaos for a sustained period of time with no possibility of ending it.”

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