Description: US naval forces in the Caribbean, deployed earlier this month, have conducted a so – called kinetic attack on a speedboat allegedly transporting drugs off the coast of Venezuela. The attack, confirmed by the US President Donald Trump, eliminated 11 members of the Tren de Aragua drug cartel as the speedboat was identified to have been transporting a substantial amount of drugs to the US. The attack arrives as US – Venezuela relations are extremely tense, with Trump deploying considerable military assets such as warships, carriers and troops close to the Venezuelan coast, while Maduro continues to inflame the narrative of regime change in Venezuela through US military intervention. Several media outlets, despite official confirmation from the White House, have questioned the origin of the video as suspicions of its authenticity quickly emerged.
Impact: The US military operation off the Venezuelan coast still falls under the purview of regional military posturing and demonstration of force while also displaying the levels of US military interventionism under the current conditions. Trump is unlikely to authorize a full – scale military invasion of Venezuela, however, covert activities accompanied by hybrid attacks and limited ground special forces operations remain a real possibility. The Trump administration is presently pushing a double vectored foreign policy towards Venezuela with easing sanctions and allowing oil giants such as Chevron to operate in Venezuelan basins on the one hand, and threatening Maduro directly through the positioning of significant military and naval assets off the coast of Venezuela. Earlier this year, the US led an operation which resulted in the successful evacuation of the Venezuelan political opposition from the Argentinian embassy in Caracas, which indicates that a long – term regime change strategy could be among the crosshairs of the current administration. Under the current constellation of regional power dynamics, bilateral tensions would continue to gradually escalate until the US achieves significant progress in what the Trump administration has designated as the war on drug cartels.