The US Department of Defence (Pentagon) announced that it has ordered the deployment of the USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier and strike group to the US Southern Command as part of increased tensions and military build-up in the region. Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell stated that the purpose of this move is to “enhance the US’s capacity to detect, monitor and interdict illicit actors and activities that jeopardise its security and prosperity”.
This aircraft carrier deployment represents a major escalation of military power in a region where the United States is building an unusually large military build-up in the Caribbean Sea and off Venezuela.
Counter-Narcoterrorism and Tren de Aragua
Hours before the aircraft carrier deployment order, Defence Minister Pete Hegseth announced that the US military had carried out the 10th attack on a boat suspected of drug trafficking, bringing the death toll in these attacks to at least 43 since September. Hegseth stated that the ship shot at night was operated by the Tren de Aragua gang.
“If you are a narco-terrorist smuggling drugs in our hemisphere, we will treat you like we treat Al-Qaeda,” Minister Hegseth said in a post on social media, drawing a direct comparison between operations against drug traffickers and the fight against terrorism.
Venezuela and Maduro in the US Focus
The US military build-up in the Caribbean Sea and off the coast of Venezuela has fuelled speculation that the administration may seek to overthrow Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, who faces narco-terrorism charges in the United States. The increase in the pace of attacks in recent days and the army’s expansion of the area towards the east of the Pacific Ocean drew attention.
The US had recently flown two supersonic heavy bombers to the Venezuelan coast. In response to this situation, Maduro announced that he conducted defence drills on approximately 2 thousand kilometres of coastline in preparation for a possible attack.
Military Show of Force and Legal Controversies
Elizabeth Dickinson, an analyst at the International Crisis Group, said that the US military presence in the region was less about drugs and more about sending a message to the countries in the region to align with US interests. Dickinson emphasised that the main message here was that the United States was determined to use military force against leaders who did not comply with its objectives.
On the other hand, ordering military action without authorisation from Congress caused concern among both Democratic and Republican MPs. The US bases its operations on the “armed conflict” authorisation used by the Bush administration after 11 September.
