The Venezuelan government has strongly condemned what it called a “military provocation” by Trinidad and Tobago, allegedly conducted in cooperation with the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
In a statement released on Sunday, Vice President Delcy Rodríguez claimed that Venezuelan forces had captured a group of mercenaries who supposedly possessed “direct information from the U.S. intelligence agency” and intended to carry out a false-flag attack in the region. Rodríguez did not provide additional evidence to support these claims.
Meanwhile, joint military exercises between the United States, Trinidad, and Tobago are ongoing in the Caribbean, heightening tensions with Caracas.
According to CNN sources, U.S. President Donald Trump is reportedly considering an operation targeting cocaine trafficking networks within Venezuela, though no final decision has been made.
At the same time, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered the Navy’s carrier strike group to move to the Caribbean amid reports of a growing U.S. military presence in the region.
Despite escalating tensions, two U.S. officials told CNN that President Trump has not ruled out a diplomatic approach to curb the flow of drugs from Venezuela to the United States, although talks with President Nicolás Maduro have stalled in recent weeks.
