US President Donald Trump’s announcement comes at a time when tensions have soared between the US and Venezuela, with Washington continuously targeting Caracas over drug trafficking.
US President Donald Trump said on Saturday that the airspace above and surrounding Venezuela should be considered closed amid the escalating tensions between the two countries. The Republican leader, however, did not elaborate about it much.
“To all Airlines, Pilots, Drug Dealers, and Human Traffickers, please consider THE AIRSPACE ABOVE AND SURROUNDING VENEZUELA TO BE CLOSED IN ITS ENTIRETY. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” Trump posted on Truth Social.
Venezuela is yet to react to Trump’s statement.
Trump’s announcement comes at a time when tensions have soared between the US and Venezuela, with Washington continuously targeting Caracas over drug trafficking. The Trump administration has deployed the world’s largest aircraft carrier in the Caribbean and the eastern Pacific, and has also destroyed more than 20 Venezuelan vessels, accusing them of drug trafficking.
Caracas has criticised the move and alleged that Washington wants a regime change in Venezuela. Venezuelan President Nicholas Maduro has claimed that the US is using a drug offensive for regime change to capture the country’s oil.
But the US has kept criticising Venezuela, with Trump warning that Maduro’s ‘days are numbered’. However, 79-year-old has said that the US will unlikely go to a war with Venezuela. “I wouldn’t be inclined to say that I would do that… I’m not going to tell you what I’m going to do with Venezuela,” he told CBS in an interview.
The US has also justified its strikes on Venezuelan vessels that has claimed 80 lives so far. Trump has said each sunken boat has saved 25,000 American lives, presumably from overdoses.
“The President determined that the United States is in a non-international armed conflict with these designated terrorist organizations,” a Trump administration memo obtained by The Associated Press (AP) said. “The United States has now reached a critical point where we must use force in self-defense and defense of others against the ongoing attacks by these designated terrorist organizations.”
