Trump briefed on updated military options in Venezuela
President Donald Trump has been briefed on updated options for potential military operations in Venezuela, including a strike on land, ABC News has confirmed.
The briefing on Wednesday followed the arrival of the USS Gerald Ford -- the world’s largest aircraft carrier -- in the U.S. Southern Command area of operations north of the Caribbean Sea. The carrier is accompanied by some 60 aircraft, including F-18 fighter jets, that dramatically increases the military’s firepower in the region and boost the number of troops in Latin America to 15,000.
Sources cautioned that the briefing itself was not an indication that an attack was imminent.
Trump has been weighing his options for weeks, which experts say could range from no action to air strikes on seaports, airports and military facilities. Another option, considered less likely, could be sending in a team of special operations forces to apprehend or kill Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro and his senior advisers.
The latest briefing at the White House was conducted by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who was in Canada at a G7 summit of foreign ministers, and CIA Director John Ratcliffe were not present.
The White House and Pentagon declined to comment on the briefing, which was first reported by CBS News.
On Thursday Hegseth announced the Latin America campaign has been designated Operation Southern Spear.
Any strike against Venezuela is seen as particularly risky. Trump has called for Maduro to step down, accusing him of encouraging drug trafficking and illegal migration to the United States. But the sudden departure of Maduro could also create a power vacuum that risks further instability.
It’s also not clear whether the administration would be legally justified to force out Maduro. Late last month, senators were briefed on a secret list of targets inside Venezuela developed by the Pentagon. But lawmakers said they were told the administration’s current legal analysis only applied to the ongoing boat strikes and did not make the case for a direct strike against Venezuela.
