Tensions in the Caribbean have just surged after U.S. President Donald Trump issued an ultimatum to Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro to resign immediately and leave the country. Trump had previously amassed U.S. forces in the region and, it appears, is now only waiting to give the order for a ground operation to begin.
U.S. President Donald Trump issued an ultimatum to Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro to leave Venezuela immediately, before announcing that the country’s airspace would be closed, according to the report.
According to the Miami Herald, Washington delivered the warning during a phone call with Caracas and included an offer of guaranteed evacuation for Maduro, his wife Cilia Flores, and their son — but only if he agreed to resign immediately. U.S. Republican Senator Markwayne Mullin said the U.S. had offered Maduro the chance to “go to Russia” or another country. However, the offer was rejected, and Trump then announced that Venezuelan airspace would be considered “completely closed.” He later confirmed he had spoken with Maduro by phone, but did not provide details.
“I don’t want to comment on anything,” he said, adding that Venezuelan airspace should be considered closed “because we believe Venezuela is not exactly a friendly country.”
On Saturday, an unnamed U.S. official told the Washington Post that U.S. military aircraft are reportedly patrolling international airspace near Venezuela almost constantly.
An ominous sign in the sky
One consequence of Trump’s latest decision is the continued suspension of flights to Venezuela, leaving dozens of passengers stranded at airports in other countries, RTVE reports.
Caracas on Saturday condemned Trump’s statement that Venezuelan airspace should be considered closed. The Venezuelan government denounced it as a “colonialist threat” to the country’s sovereignty, incompatible with international law.
The next day, Maduro announced special measures to bring home Venezuelan citizens affected by Trump’s decision, ordering the implementation of a special plan for the return of Venezuelans located abroad, as well as assistance in finding routes for citizens wishing to leave the country, Vice President Delcy Rodríguez said on Telegram, without providing further details.
According to her, the U.S. government followed the request of opposition leader María Corina Machado to attempt to close Venezuelan airspace.
Cartel designated as a terrorist organization
Before closing the airspace, the U.S. officially designated the cartel allegedly linked to the Venezuelan government — the Cartel de los Soles — as a foreign terrorist organization.
“This cartel turned Venezuela’s main oil company into a money-laundering operation for drug trafficking, using the company’s access to international finance until it was sanctioned. They used Venezuelan military aircraft to transport cocaine from Colombia, process it in Venezuela, and then send it to Central America and on to Europe,” former Venezuelan diplomat Vanessa Neumann told Fox News.
In September, the European Parliament also voted for the European Union to designate the Cartel de los Soles as a terrorist organization.
The U.S. has also intensified its military and intelligence campaign targeting drug-trafficking networks linked to Venezuela, including attacks on vessels suspected of transporting narcotics.
Del Cartel de los Soles se tienen 600 objetivos plenamente identificados: Lugares, Procesos y Personas.
— Iván Simonovis (@Simonovis) November 30, 2025
Quien permanezca cercano o vinculado con estos objetivos enfrentará, sin excepción, el mismo destino que los líderes terroristas del CDLS.
Mi análisis:… pic.twitter.com/TTAskHUezW
“We will begin ground operations very soon”
U.S. strikes on vessels suspected of trafficking drugs in the Caribbean have been ongoing for months, while American forces continue to amass in the region. Trump has also authorized CIA covert operations in Venezuela.
Around a dozen U.S. warships — including the world’s largest aircraft carrier, the Gerald Ford — as well as roughly 12,000 sailors and marines have been deployed in the Caribbean, marking the largest U.S. presence in South America in decades. Since the start of September, Operation “Southern Spear” has destroyed 22 vessels and killed at least 83 people allegedly transporting narcotics across the Caribbean and eastern Pacific.
Trump earlier suggested that military action may expand beyond maritime strikes, saying the U.S. would “stop the flow of drugs by land,” and on Sunday announced that the U.S. would “very soon” begin ground operations to dismantle drug-trafficking networks in Venezuela. Maduro responded that eight million people would defend the country.
🇺🇸 ON VIDEO: U.S. Military Forces conducted a strike against Tren de Aragua Narcoterrorists. The strike occurred while the terrorists were at sea in International waters transporting illegal narcotics, heading to the U.S. The strike resulted in 11 terrorists killed in action. pic.twitter.com/iszHE0ttxQ
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) September 2, 2025
Military power of Venezuela and the U.S.
A conflict between Venezuela and the U.S. would pit two highly unequal opponents against each other:
- The U.S. military is superior in every aspect — stronger, better equipped, and better trained.
- The Venezuelan military — numbering around 300,000 across regular and paramilitary forces — is weakened by lack of training, low wages, and decaying equipment, Reuters reports.
Analysts note that the Venezuelan military’s biggest problem is its extreme politicization, as its main role for years has not been preparing for conventional warfare but protecting Maduro’s regime.
What about Caracas’ allies?
Andrej Serbin Pont, a defense and security expert from the “Kraiz” institute, stated that Maduro can hardly rely on military support from allies such as China or Russia, who are redirecting aircraft toward Cuba due to rising tensions.
Nicholas Burns, former U.S. deputy secretary of state, believes the consequences of possible escalation and war are underestimated.
“This is the most dangerous moment in Latin America since the Cuban Missile Crisis. If there is an invasion and Maduro is overthrown, Russia and China will not intervene directly, but will respond asymmetrically, mainly through cyberattacks. And the situation will become complicated in all neighboring countries. Nobody wants Maduro, but nobody wants an American intervention either,” he said.
Meanwhile, Maduro requested help from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to stop U.S. “aggression,” stating in a letter that military action would severely threaten Venezuela’s oil production stability as well as the global market.
“I hope I can count on your best efforts to help stop this aggression, which is growing stronger and seriously threatens the balance of the international energy market,” Maduro wrote to OPEC.
“The decision is up to Trump”
According to Neumann, “the decision lies with Trump.”
“When he says, ‘Go,’ we go. And no one knows when he’ll say it. He has deployed so many resources there now. Even Maduro’s biggest allies, Russia and Iran, are currently on the defensive, and China will not go that far in supporting Maduro because it has wider interests throughout the region,” Neumann said.
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Source: Kurir