US military deploys aircraft carrier group to South America amid soaring tensions with Venezuela

Summary

• Trump escalates military presence in the Caribbean, deploying the Gerald Ford carrier group, warships, a submarine, and F-35 aircraft, raising regional concerns.
• The US military has conducted 10 strikes against alleged drug vessels since September, killing about 40 people, some reportedly Venezuelan.
• Tensions rise with Venezuela and Colombia; Trump accuses Maduro of drug links and Petro of being an "illegal drug leader."

WASHINGTON - US President Donald Trump dramatically escalated a US military build-up in the Caribbean on Oct 24 by deploying the Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier group to Latin America, a show of force that far exceeds any past counter-narcotics need and represents Washington’s most muscular move yet in the region.

The deployment, which adds to the eight warships, a nuclear submarine and F-35 aircraft already in the region, marks a significant escalation amid heightened tensions with Venezuela, whose government Washington has long accused of harbouring drug traffickers and undermining democratic institutions.

“The enhanced US force presence in the USSOUTHCOM AOR (area of responsibility) will bolster US capacity to detect, monitor, and disrupt illicit actors and activities that compromise the safety and prosperity of the United States homeland and our security in the Western Hemisphere,” Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell posted on X.

He did not specify when the carrier would be moving to the region, but as at a few days ago, the carrier was travelling via the Strait of Gibraltar and in Europe.

The Ford, which was commissioned in 2017, is the US’ newest aircraft carrier and the world’s largest, with more than 5,000 sailors on board.

Mr Parnell said: “These forces will enhance and augment existing capabilities to disrupt narcotics trafficking and degrade and dismantle (transnational criminal organisations).”

The US military has carried out 10 strikes against alleged drug vessels, mostly in the Caribbean, since early September, killing about 40 people. While the Pentagon has not given much information, it has said some of those killed were Venezuelan.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has repeatedly alleged that the US is hoping to drive him from power.

On Oct 23, Mr Maduro warned that if the US ever intervened in the country, “the working class would rise and a general insurrectional strike would be declared in the streets until power is regained”, adding that “millions of men and women with rifles would march across the country”.

Washington in August doubled its reward for information leading to Mr Maduro’s arrest to US$50 million (S$65 million), accusing him of links to drug trafficking and criminal groups that Mr Maduro denies.

Tensions between the US and Venezuela’s neighbour, Colombia, have also spiked in recent days, with Mr Trump accusing Colombian President Gustavo Petro of being an “illegal drug leader” and a “bad guy” – language Mr Petro’s government says is offensive.

Mr Trump has authorised the Central Intelligence Agency to conduct covert operations in Venezuela.

Just hours after US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth announced the carrier deployment, the Trump administration announced that it was imposing sanctions on Mr Petro, citing alleged illicit drugs.

Increasing military build-up

Mr Trump has said his administration plans to brief the US Congress on operations against drug cartels and that even though he did not need a declaration of war, operations against cartels on land would be next.

On Oct 24, Mr Hegseth announced that the latest strike against an alleged drug vessel killed six suspected “narco-terrorists” in the Caribbean.

The strikes have raised alarms among some legal experts and Democratic lawmakers, who question whether they adhere to the laws of war.

Some Republican lawmakers cheered the carrier deployment.

“President Trump is not messing around when it comes to protecting the US and our Western Hemisphere neighbourhood,” US Representative Rick Crawford of Arkansas posted on X.

Last week, Reuters was first to report that two alleged drug traffickers survived a US military strike in the Caribbean.

They were rescued and taken to a US Navy warship before being repatriated to their home countries of Colombia and Ecuador.

With only 11 aircraft carriers in the US military’s arsenal, they are a scarce resource and their schedules are usually set well in advance.

In 2024, the USS George Washington deployed to South America, but that was scheduled well in advance and was part of an exercise.

The Ford carrier, powered by two nuclear reactors, can hold more than 75 military aircraft, including fighter aircraft like the F-18 Super Hornet, and the E-2 Hawkeye, which can act as an early warning system. It has an arsenal of missiles, like the Evolved Sea Sparrow Missile, a medium-range, surface-to-air missile used to counter drones and aircraft.

The Ford also includes sophisticated radars that can help control air traffic and navigation.

The supporting ships, such as the Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruiser Normandy, and Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyers Thomas Hudner, Ramage, Carney and Roosevelt, include surface-to-air, surface-to-surface and anti-submarine warfare capabilities. REUTERS