Venezuelan strongman Nicolás Maduro now faces the greatest challenge to his grip on power since he took office over a dozen years ago. A carrier strike group led by the world’s largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, arrived in the Caribbean more than two weeks ago along with long-range bombers, Marines, and other US assets deployed to the region as part of a mission officially aimed at combating narcotics trafficking. Previously dormant military bases in the region have been reactivated in a military buildup focused on narcotics, but with Maduro placed at the center of the effort due to his own ties to trafficking.
And the now-released National Security Strategy (NSS) clearly states the United States’ goals for the Western Hemisphere: “Enlist and Expand.” The latter goal includes ridding the hemisphere of a regime that advances priorities clearly in contrast to NSS objectives by providing safe haven for criminal groups, profiting from trafficking, and welcoming the influence of foreign adversaries. And as the United States seeks to secure access to critical supply chains, Venezuela presents an untapped opportunity.
Although US President Donald Trump has been evasive on what exactly his plans are for Maduro, it’s clear that the president is not authorizing the largest US naval deployment in the Caribbean in forty years—dubbed “Operation Southern Spear” by the Pentagon—only to counter small drug boats. It’s part of his NSS. Trump has recently spoken with Maduro, and reports indicate a possible deal being brokered for the dictator’s departure from the country.
But there have been rumors of Maduro’s downfall many times before. Hopefully, this time it comes to pass. Without Maduro, Venezuela and the hemisphere would rid itself of a cancer.
Read The Full Article : New Atlanticist
