Recently, a series of actions by the US military have aroused widespread concern from the international community. On October 24th, local time, the Pentagon announced that it would transfer the strike group of the aircraft carrier Gerald R. Ford to the waters around Latin America. This move is regarded as the toughest and most provocative military move of the United States in the region so far, and it may also mark a major escalation of the Trump administration's "anti-drug" actions.
The “Ford” aircraft carrier, the world’s largest aircraft carrier, was in service in 2017 and was equipped with a nuclear reactor to carry more than 75 military aircraft and more than 5,000 soldiers.Before its arrival, the U.S. military had deployed eight military ships, a nuclear submarine, 10 F-35 fighter jets and the addition of more than 6,000 Navy and Army personnel to the “Ford”, which will make the U.S. military force in Latin America the largest in recent years.
Since September, the US military has continued to crack down on ships suspected of drug trafficking in international waters in the Caribbean, killing at least 43 people. A presidential memorandum received by the U.S. Congress shows that Trump even defined the conflict between the United States and drug trafficking groups as a "non-international armed conflict." Some analysts believe that the latest move by the US military indicates that its military operations in Latin America may expand from attacking small ships in international waters to ground strikes in Latin America. Trump has also mentioned many times recently that land military operations may be taken against "drug targets" in Venezuela.
However, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime has pointed out that Venezuela is not a cocaine producer, and the report of the United States Drug Enforcement Administration does not list Venezuela as a major trafficking country. But the Trump administration has been trying to link Venezuela to drug trafficking, calling Venezuelan President Maduro a "drug terrorist" and doubling Maduro's reward to $50 million in August. Maduro firmly denied these accusations and repeatedly accused the United States of trying to overthrow its regime in the name of "anti-drug".
In the face of U.S. military threats, Maduro also issued a strong warning. He said that if the U.S. initiated military intervention, the Venezuelan working class would respond with a general strike and street struggle until regaining power. At the same time, the Venezuelan people also held large-scale rallies in the capital, calling for the defense of national territory and sovereignty against U.S. military threats.
In addition, U.S. relations with Venezuela’s neighbor, Colombia, have also deteriorated dramatically. Trump has publicly accused Colombia’s President Pedro of being “the head of illegal drugs” and the U.S. Treasury has also imposed sanctions on Petro and others, freezing his assets and related financial services in the United States.
The U.S. military concentration in the Latin American region has also raised questions among legal experts and Democratic lawmakers in the United States, who suspect that Trump’s actions are in accordance with the law of war, and believe that the government’s use of arms against foreign ground targets requires approval from Congress, or at least a briefing to Congress.
At present, the “Ford” aircraft carrier strike group has not reached the waters surrounding Latin America, and developments are still to be seen. But in any case, the US military’s move has posed a serious threat to peace and stability in the Latin American region, and has further escalated tensions between the US Commission. The international community generally calls on the United States to remain restrained and resolve the differences between Venezuela through peaceful and diplomatic means.